选择知识点

    During an interview for one of my books, my interviewer said something I still think about often. Annoyed by the level of distraction(干扰)in his open office, he said, "Thatˈs why I have a membership at the coworking space across the street —so I can focus." His comment struck me as strange. After all, coworking spaces also typically use an open office layout (布局). But I recently came across a study that shows why his approach works.

    The researchers examined various levels of noise on participants as they completed tests of creative thinking. They were randomly divided into four groups and exposed to various noise levels in the background, from total silence to 50 decibels(分贝), 70 decibels, and 85 decibels. The differences between most of the groups were statistically insignificant; however,the participants in the 70 decibels group—those exposed to a level of noise similar to background chatter in a coffee shop-significantly outperformed the other groups. Since the effects were small, this may suggest that our creative thinking does not differ that much in response to total silence and 85 decibels of background noise.

    But since the results at 70 decibels were significant, the study also suggests that the right level of background noise—not too loud and not total silence—may actually improve oneˈs creative thinking ability. The right level of background noise may interrupt our normal patterns of thinking just enough to allow our imaginations to wander, without making it impossible to focus. This kind of "distracted focus" appears to be the best state for working on creative tasks.

    So why do so many of us hate our open offices? The problem may be that, in our offices, we canˈt stop ourselves from getting drawn into othersˈ conversations while weˈre trying to focus. Indeed, the researchers found that face-to-face interactions and conversations affect the creative process, and yet a coworking space or a coffee shop provides a certain level of noise while also providing freedom from interruptions.

Why does the interviewer prefer a coworking space?
A. It helps him concentrate. B. It blocks out background noise. C. It has a pleasant atmosphere. D. It encourages face-to-face interactions.
Which level of background noise may promote creative thinking ability?
A. Total silence. B. 50 decibels. C. 70 decibels. D. 85 decibels.
What makes an open office unwelcome to many people?
A. Personal privacy unprotected. B. Limited working space. C. Restrictions on group discussion. D. Constant interruptions.
What can we infer about the author from the text?
A. Heˈs a news reporter. B. Heˈs on office manager. C. Heˈs a professional designer. D. Heˈs a published writer.

   Some parents will buy any high﹣tech toy if they think it will help their child，but researchers said puzzles help children with math-related skills．

    Psychologist Susan Levine，an expert on mathematics development in young children at the University of Chicago，found children who play with puzzles between ages 2 and 4 later develop better spatial skills．Puzzle play was found to be a significant predictor of cognition（认知）after controlling for differences in parentsˈ income，education and the amount of parent talk，Levine said．

    The researchers analyzed video recordings of 53 child-parent pairs during everyday activities at home and found children who play with puzzles between 26 and 46 months of age have better spatial skills when assessed at 54 months of age．

    "The children who played with puzzles performed better than those who did not，on tasks that assessed their ability to rotate（旋转）and translate shapes，" Levine said in a statement．

    The parents were asked to interact with their children as they normally would， and about half of the children in the study played with puzzles at one time．Higher-income parents tended to have children play with puzzles more frequently，and both boys and girls who played with puzzles had better spatial skills．However，boys tended to play with more complex puzzles than girls，and the parents of boys provided more spatial language and were more active during puzzle play than the parents of girls．

    The findings were published in the journal Developmental Science．

In which aspect do children benefit from puzzle play？
A. Building confidence． B. Developing spatial skills． C. Learning self-control． D. Gaining high-tech knowledge．
What did Levine take into consideration when designing her experiment？
A. Parentsˈ age． B. Childrenˈs imagination． C. Parentsˈ education． D. Child-parent relationship．
How do boys differ from girls in puzzle play？
A. They play with puzzles more often． B. They tend to talk less during the game． C. They prefer to use more spatial language． D. They are likely to play with tougher puzzles．
What is the text mainly about？
A. A mathematical method． B. A scientific study． C. A woman psychologist． D. A teaching program．

    Challenging work that requires lots of analytical thinking，planning and other managerial skills might help your brain stay sharp as you age，a study published Wednesday in the journal Neurology suggests．

    Researchers from the University of Leipzig in Germany gathered more than 1，000 retired workers who were over age 75 and assessed the volunteersˈ memory and thinking skills through a battery of tests．Then，for eight years，the scientists asked the same group to come back to the lab every 18 months to take the same sorts of tests．

    Those who had held mentally stimulating（刺激），demanding jobs before retirement tended to do the best on the tests．And they tended to lose cognitive（认知）function at a much slower rate than those with the least mentally challenging jobs．The results held true even after the scientists accounted for the participantsˈ overall health status．

    "This works just like physical exercise，" says Francisca Then，who led the study．"After a long run，you may feel like youˈre in pain，you may feel tired．But it makes you fit．After a long day at work—sure，you will feel tired，but it can help your brain stay healthy．"

    Itˈs not just corporate jobs，or even paid work that can help keep your brain fit．Then points out．A waiterˈs job，for example，that requires multitasking，teamwork and decision-making could be just as stimulating as any high-level office work．And "running a family household requires high-level planning and coordinating（协调），" she says．"You have to organize the activities of the children and take care of the bills and groceries．"

    Of course，our brains can decline as we grow older for lots of reasons—including other environmental influences or genetic factors．Still，continuing to challenge yourself mentally and keeping your mind busy can only help．

Why did the scientists ask the volunteers to take the tests？
A. To assess their health status． B. To evaluate their work habits． C. To analyze their personality． D. To measure their mental ability．
How does Francisca Then explain her findings in paragraph 4？
A. By using an expertˈs words． B. By making a comparison． C. By referring to another study． D. By introducing a concept．
Which of the following is the best title for the text？
A. Retired Workers Can Pick Up New Skills B. Old People Should Take Challenging Jobs C. Your Tough Job Might Help Keep You Sharp D. Cognitive Function May Decline As You Age

Boomerang children who return to live with their parents after university can be good for families， leading to closer， more supportive relationships and increased contact between the generations， a study has found．
The findings contradict research published earlier this year showing that returning adult children trigger a significant decline in their parents" quality of life and wellbeing．
The young adults taking part in the study were "more positive than might have been expected" about moving back home - the shame is reduced as so many of their peers are in the same position， and they acknowledged the benefits of their parents" financial and emotional support． Daughters were happier than sons， often slipping back easily into teenage patterns of behaviour， the study found．
Parents on the whole were more uncertain， expressing concern about the likely duration of the arrangement and how to manage it． But they acknowledged that things were different for graduates today， who leave university with huge debts and fewer job opportunities．
The families featured in the study were middle-class and tended to view the achievement of adult independence for their children as a "family project"． Parents accepted that their children required support as university students and then as graduates returning home， as they tried to find jobs paying enough to enable them to move out and get on the housing ladder．
"However，" the study says， "day-to-day tensions about the prospects of achieving different dimensions of independence， which in a few extreme cases came close to conflict， characterised the experience of a majority of parents and a little over half the graduates"．
Areas of disagreement included chores， money and social life． While parents were keen to help， they also wanted different relationships from those they had with their own parents， and continuing to support their adult children allowed them to remain close．



What is the finding of the previous research？ ______

A. Boomerang children made their parents happier．
B. The parents were looking forward to their children's return．
C. The parents" quality of life became worse than before．
D. Boomerang children never did any housework．

The underlined word "trigger" in Paragraph 2 may be best replaced by ______ ．

A. cause
B. defeat
C. arise
D. allow

What is the attitude of the college graduates towards returning home？ ______

A. They are ashamed of turning to their parents for help．
B. They are glad that they could come back．
C. They are doubtful about whether they should return．
D. They are proud to be independent from the family．

What can be inferred as the reason for the "boomerang children" phenomenon？ ______

A. The children want to keep in closer touch with their parents．
B. The parents are willing to provide support to their children．
C. It is harder for the children to secure a satisfying job．
D. There is more house work needed to be done by the children．

Created in 1998 by Casey and Shelley Black， the Northern Lights Wildlife Wolf Center focuses on not only rescuing young abandoned wolves but educating the public． Unlike other centers， you can actually walk with the wolves and have exciting， hands-on interaction with them here． And so， we gathered one late winter morning to learn， prepare and walk．
Scrappy and Flora，our wolves that day，were brought to the center when only a few days old． "They lived in the house with us for the first several months． We treated them like human babies， fed them and slept with them，" said Shelley． So， they are totally used to people． However， these are wild animals． For that reason， Shelley and Casey explained， the walk is totally on the wolf's terms． "We don't approach them， but if they come up to us， we can touch them． "
With all this in mind， we headed for the woods． We were walking on a logging road when suddenly，Flora， all 60 pounds of her，hurried up to me and raised up on her legs． She was almost as tall as me． As she leaned in， put her huge muddy paws on my shoulders and sniffed my face， apparently she was saying hello in wolf talk．
We walked farther， maybe half a mile， while Scrappy and Flora dashed in and out of the woods stopping to occasionally roll in the snow，dig for this or that and just play． Then we all headed into the trees to a picturesque stream where the wolves splashed，drank and had a great time．
One could point out that this whole adventure was staged and quite artificial． But the purpose， Casey and Shelley said，is to explain the wolves" place in the environment and，primarily，to let people know wolves don" t have to be universally feared-they really don" t hide secretly in the woods just waiting to eat people，but they" d rather avoid people，for the most part．



How is the Northern Lights Wildlife Wolf Center different from others？ ______

A. It trains and educates wild wolves．
B. It aims to rescue young abandoned wolves．
C. It raises wolves for commercial purposes．
D. It allows visitors to take a walk with wolves．

What can be inferred from Shelley and Casey's explanation in Paragraph 2？ ______

A. The walk can be potentially dangerous．
B. The wolves have lost all their wildness．
C. People should get close to the wolves actively．
D. The wolves can read people's mind like human babies．

Why did Flora behave like that when she saw the author on the logging road？ ______

A. To express curiosity．
B. To show friendliness．
C. To attract attention．
D. To seek companionship．

Why do Casey and Shelley organize such an adventure？ ______

A. To advertise the center．
B. To publicize wolf hunting．
C. To promote environmental protection．
D. To clarify some conventional views of wolves．

When a driver slams on the brakes to avoid hitting a pedestrian crossing the road illegally， she is making a moral decision that shifts risk from the pedestrian to the people in the car． Self-driving cars might soon have to make such ethical （道德的）judgments on their own - but settling on a universal moral code for the vehicles could be a tough task， suggests a survey．
The largest ever survey of machine ethics， called the Moral Machine， laid out 13 possible situations in which someone's death was unavoidable． Respondents were asked to choose who to spare in situations that involved a mix of variables： young or old， rich or poor， more people or fewer． Within 18months， the online quiz had recorded 40 million decisions made by people from 233 countries and territories．
When the researchers analysed these answers， they found that the nations could be divided into three groups． One contains North America and several European nations where Christianity has been the dominant （占支配地位的）religion； another includes countries such as Japan， Indonesia and Pakistan， with strong Confucian or Islamic traditions． A third group consists of countries in Central and South America， such as Colombia and Brazil． The first group showed a stronger preference for sacrificing older lives to save younger ones than did the second group， for example．
The researchers also identified relationships between social and economic factors in a country． They found that people from relatively wealthy countries with strong institutions， such as Finland and Japan， more often chose to hit people who stepped into traffic illegally than did respondents in nations with weaker institutions， such as Nigeria or Pakistan．
People rarely face such moral dilemmas， and some cities question whether the possible situations posed in the online quiz are relevant to the ethical and practical questions surrounding driverless cars． But the researchers argue that the findings reveal cultural differences that governments and makers of self-driving cars must take into account if they want the vehicles to gain public acceptance．
At least Barbara Wege， who heads a group working on autonomous-vehicle ethics at Audi in Ingolstadt， Germany， says such studies are valuable． Wege argues that self-driving cars would cause fewer accidents， proportionally， than human drivers do each year-but that people might focus more on events involving robots．
Surveys such as the Moral Machine can help to begin public discussions about these unavoidable accidents that might develop trust． "We need to come up with a social consensus，" she says， "about which risks we are willing to take．"



Why is it difficult to set universal moral rules for programming self-driving cars？ ______

A. Social values always change with the times．
B. Moral choices vary between different cultures．
C. Drivers have a preference for sacrificing the weak．
D. Car makers are faced with decisions of life or death．

The researchers conducted the study by ______ ．

A. using a massive online quiz worldwide
B. comparing different cultures and customs
C. dividing the respondents into three groups
D. performing a series of controlled experiments

According to the study， in which country are drivers more likely to hit a pedestrian crossing the road illegally？ ______

A. Nigeria
B. Colombia
C. Finland
D. Indonesia

Barbara Wege would probably agree that ______ ．

A. Self-driving cars will greatly improve the traffic environment
B. Accidents caused by self-driving cars might receive more attention
C. Problems involving self-driving cars might shake the public trust in society
D. Car makers needn't take the risk of solving self-driving car ethical dilemmas

You have probably heard of the Mozart effect． It's the idea that if children or even babies listen to music composed by Mozart， they will become more intelligent． A quick Internet search reveals plenty of products to assist you in the task． Whatever your age is there are CDs and books to help you taste the power of Mozart's music， but when it comes to scientific evidence that it can make you more clever， the picture is more mixed．
The phrase "the Mozart effect" was made up in 1991， but it was a study described two years later in the journal Nature that sparked real media and public interest about the idea that listening to classical music somehow improves the brain． It is one of those ideas that sound reasonable． Mozart was undoubtedly a genius himself； his music is complex and there is a hope that if we listen to enough of it， we'll become more intelligent．
The idea took off，with thousands of parents playing Mozart to their children， and in 1998 Zell Miller， the Governor of the state of Georgia in the US， even asked for money to be set aside in the state budget so that every newborn baby could be sent a CD of classical music． It was not just babies and children who were exposed to Mozart's music on purpose， even an Italian farmer proudly explained that the cows were played Mozart three times a day to help them produce better milk．
I'll leave the debate on the impact on milk yield to farmers， but what about the evidence that listening to Mozart makes people more intelligent？ More research was carried out but an analysis of sixteen different studies confirmed that listening to music does lead to a temporary improvement in the ability to handle shapes mentally， but the benefits are short-lived and it doesn't make us more intelligent．



What can we learn from Paragraph 1？ ______

A. Mozart composed many musical pieces for children．
B. Children listening to Mozart will be more intelligent．
C. There are few products on the Internet about Mozart's music．
D. There is little scientific evidence to support the Mozart effect．

Why did many people believe in the idea of the Mozart effect？ ______

A. Because a study described it in the journal Nature．
B. Because Mozart himself was a genius．
C. Because Mozart's music is enjoyable．
D. Because Mozart's music makes people relaxed．

The underlined sentence in Paragraph 3 suggests that ______ ．

A. people were strongly against the idea
B. the idea was accepted by many people
C. Mozart played an important part in people's life
D. the US government helped promote the idea

What is the author's attitude towards the Mozart effect？ ______

A. Favorable．
B. Objective．
C. Doubtful．
D. Positive．

Firefightersin Harrisburg， North Carolinaresponded to a routine medical call this week， but what they did after certainly went above and beyond the call of duty．
FOX 46 Charlottereported that the firefighters of Engine-3 were dispatched for a medical call and the patient needed to be transported to the hospital by ambulance． The patient's wife needed to join him， leaving the two children alone at home until their grandparents could arrive． "Sometimes we do what needs to be done，" the firefighters shared on Facebook． "The parents of these two guys needed to get to the hospital by ambulance and it was going to be about 30minutes till Grandpa could make it from another county． The crew of Engine-3 came to the rescue! The guys enjoyed being awesome kid sitters till their grandpa arrived， and we love our community．"
While none of the first responders at the scene have children of their own， they proved to be naturals when it came to the babysitting service． Members of Engine 3 posted photos of themselves playing with the young boys．
The Harrisburg community commended the firefighters for stepping in on Facebook， with one writing "you and your crew went above and beyond again． Sometimes the job isn't all about going to fires．" Another added： "That is just so precious and makes me smile， thank you guys for being good neighbors as well as protecting our community!"
Just in September，the firefighters in Harrisburg brought a smile to another boy's face when they celebrated his third birthday after his friends had to cancel． Jackson's mother， Melissa Reid， said at the time， "They saved my son's birthday and this is something he'll never forget．"



What did the firefighters do for the medical call？ ______

A. They put a boy's photo on Facebook．
B. They took care of two children for the patient．
C. They performed a medical treatment on the spot．
D. They rushed the patient to hospital in 30 minutes．

The underlined part in paragraph 3 refers to " ______ "．

A. get to the patient's house
B. send the patient to hospital
C. put out the fire immediately
D. come to the patient's rescue in time

What can we know from the passage？ ______

A. The patient's wife also got seriously sick．
B. The kids didn't enjoy staying with the firefighters．
C. The kids" mother thought badly of firefighters" service．
D. The firefighters helped another boy above the call of duty．

What do the people there think about firefighters" acts？ ______

A. Firefighters" acts should be limited．
B. Firefighters should put out fires first．
C. Firefighters" acts are within their duty．
D. Firefighters" acts deserve people's admiration．

GOING TO UNIVERSITY is supposed to be a mind-broadening experience． That statement is probably made in comparison to training for work straight after school， which might not be so encouraging． But is it actually true？ Jessika Golle of the University of Tübingen， in Germany， thought she would try to find out． Her result， however， is not quite what might be expected． As she reports in Psychological Science this week， she found that those who have been to university do indeed seem to leave with broader and more inquiring minds than those who have spent their immediate post-school years in vocational （职业的） training for work． However， it was not the case that university broadened minds． Rather， work seemed to narrow them．
Dr． Golle came to this conclusion after she and a team of colleagues studied the early careers of 2，095 German youngsters． The team used two standardized tests to assess their volunteers． One was of personality traits， including openness， conscientiousness（认真）and so on． The other was of attitudes， such as realistic， investigative and enterprising． They administered both tests twice-once towards the end of each volunteer's time at school， and then again six years later． Of the original group， 382 were on the intermediate track， from which there was a choice between the academic and vocational routes， and it was on these that the researchers focused． University beckoned for 212 of them． The remaining 170 chose vocational training and a job．
When it came to the second round of tests， Dr． Golle found that the personalities of those who had gone to university had not changed significantly． Those who had undergone vocational training and then got jobs were not that much changed in personality， either-except in one crucial respect． They had become more conscientious．
That sounds like a good thing， certainly compared with the common public image of undergraduates as a bunch of lazybones． But changes in attitude that the researchers recorded were rather worrying． In the university group， again， none were detectable． But those who had chosen the vocational route showed marked drops in interest in tasks that are investigative and enterprising in nature． And that might restrict their choice of careers．
Some investigative and enterprising jobs， such as scientific research， are， indeed beyond the degreeless． But many， particularly in Germany， with its tradition of vocational training， are not． The researchers mention， for example， computer programmers and finance-sector workers as careers requiring these traits． If Dr． Golle is correct， and changes in attitude brought about by the very training Germany prides itself on are narrowing people's choices， that is indeed a matter worthy of serious consideration．



Which of the following can best replace "beckoned for" in Paragraph 2？ ______

A. Examined．
B. Attracted．
C. Organized．
D. Recognized．

What can we learn from the research？ ______

A. The degreeless have not changed in personalities．
B. Going to university is a mind-broadening experience．
C. Working straight after school narrows people's minds．
D. College students pride themselves on their education．

According to the last two paragraphs， ______ ．

A. college students enjoy a very good public image
B. the undergraduates have changed significantly in attitude
C. the degreeless are much better at dealing with challenging tasks
D. people show less interest in investigative jobs due to vocational training

What is the author's attitude towards the finding？ ______

A. Concerned．
B. Optimistic．
C. Unclear．
D. Sceptical．

One hundred grandmothers were asked how good manners had changed since they were children， what they expected of their own children when they were growing up and how their grandchildren behave today．
Although the grannies were united in the belief that good manners cost nothing they unwillingly came to the conclusion that all the old little courtesies （礼节） are gradually being erased． Some children are not taught simple good manners by their parents， in the belief that they should be free to express themselves．
Manners at mealtimes revealed the greatest inter-generational difference． While 92 percent of grandparents and 87 percent of their children sat down at the table with all the family to eat at least once a day， nowadays this applies to just 54 percent of children．
Traditional family mealtimes have been on a slippery slope for many years and this survey reveals an apparent corresponding decline in table manners． One grandmother said： My grandchildren have bad table manners as they haven't been taught them by their parents． Only 49 percent of children today have to ask to get down from the table compared with 89 percent of their grandparents and 80 percent of their parents． Keeping your elbows off the table is almost totally unnecessary， with just 19 percent of grandchildren still expected to stick to the old rule． However， some parents are still keeping family mealtimes alive， with even the smallest children joining them at the table in their highchairs whether it is their mealtime or not．
Although some little courtesies may no longer be encouraged today， good old fashioned "please" and "thank you" seem to have weathered the storm． Nevertheless， there has been a big downturn in writing thank you letters， from 86 percent of grandparents to just 35 percent of grandchildren putting pen to paper today．
A final word from one wise grandmother： "If there weren't rules there would be nothing for kids to break， no risk to take， no scars to show for mistakes． Rules let you fly．"



Which of the following would some modern parents most probably agree with？ ______

A. Good manners are very important．
B. Kids should show who they truly are．
C. It is easy for kids to learn good manners．
D. Kids should learn from their grandparents．

According to the survey， 81 percent of kids ______ ．

A. put their elbows on the table
B. usually eat in their highchairs
C. have meals with all the family
D. ask permission to leave the table

What might many kids be encouraged to do？ ______

A. Apologize sincerely face to face．
B. Show appreciation by writing letters．
C. Talk about the weather with strangers．
D. Express thankfulness in spoken words．

What is the author's attitude towards sticking to traditional courtesies？ ______

A. He is uncertain about it．
B. He is mildly critical．
C. He approves of it．
D. He is strongly against it．

Which can be the best title for the text？ ______

A. How to Express Yourself？
B. Change the Unnecessary Rules
C. Are Good Manners a Thing of the Past？
D. Grandmothers Caring for Grandkids