Have you ever walked through a door and thought to yourself, “What was I going to do?” If you have, you are not alone. Psychologists believe that walking through a door and entering another room creates a “mental block” in the brain. This is generally referred to as the doorway effect.
In the early years of brain research, scientists thought that human memory was like a closet, with many sections in which we could store little boxes of experiences from our lives. Boxes would remain there forever, and whenever we had to look into them, we could just go to that particular section and find that box of memory.
Beautiful as this description of human memory formation sounds, it is not true. Our brain is much more complex than that. Psychological studies suggest that our memories are episodic(情节性的)in general. If you think back on anything, you’ll probably quickly realize our memories don’t function as clear narratives. Instead, they’re more episodic and divided into parts.
A new research led by psychologist Oliver Baumann from Bond University in Australia suggests that it’s not so much the doorways that cause a memory wipe, as moving from one location to a significantly different one—it’s the abrupt change of scene that prepares our minds for something new. “A good example is moving around in a department store,” says Baumann, “Taking the elevator between floors may have no effect on our memory, but moving from the store to the parking lot might cause us to forget something that we need to buy.”
Baumann also points out that a busy and perhaps overloaded brain does seem to play some part in this phenomenon. In other words, walking through open doors is thought to reset memory to make room for a new episode.
The good news is that experiencing such forgettable episodes after entering another room does not tell you anything about your memory and intelligence. So when you enter a room and suddenly forget why you are there, you should not think that Alzheimer’s disease is creeping up on you!
1. Which of the following would most probably be “doorway effect”?| A．You missed a call and forgot to ring back. |
| B．You read a book and forget what it is about. |
| C．You entered the office and forgot what to get. |
| D．You saw a man years ago and forget who he is now. |
| A．All memories are linked in the brain. |
| B．Memories are clearly separated in the brain. |
| C．Not all the memories can be found in the brain. |
| D．Memories are stored in particular sections of the brain. |
| A．Taking an elevator stimulates new memory. |
| B．Walking through open doors results in memory loss. |
| C．A sudden change of the scene boosts intelligence development. |
| D．An overloaded brain increases the possibility of doorway effect. |
| A．Insignificant. | B．Beneficial. |
| C．Influential. | D．Damaging. |
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【推荐1】Virginia Bookstore
A large bookstore in a small US town has succeeded for many years by giving people a chance to buy a lot of books for a low price. The large and simple bookstore is in the small eastern town of Mount Crawford, Virginia. The Green Valley Book Fair is made up of two large storage buildings totaling 2,300 square meters.
Inside, shoppers with baskets in tow browse tables and shelves brimming with books. Many are loyal customers, like Zoe Dellinger, who has been buying books there for many years. “I have been coming here since I was in my early 20s. The thrill of finding a new book is very serendipitous(机缘巧合的)here because you can’t come and say ‘I’m buying the new Nicholas Sparks book today.’ That’s not what this place is about—this place is about finding wonderful treasures.” And those treasures are available at deeply discounted prices. “I found a wonderful book that I wanted. It was very expensive at the time—26 dollars was expensive for me to purchase a new book. I found the book here for five dollars. I was so excited, so that has kept me coming back just to see what treasures I’ll find,” said Dellinger.
The Green Valley Book Fair has 500,000 new and old books about politics, religion, science, travel, cooking and many other subjects. Michele Branner is the manager of the store. His parents actually started this bookstore about 46 years ago. His dad collected old books and then decided that he wanted to sell some of them. And it went so well that it’s just kind of evolved to what it is today. The bookstore is only open six times a year for three weeks. About 25,000 people visit during each period. The store sells about S2 million worth of books every year. ”We buy our books at a fraction of retail and we can sell them for the prices that we do and keep our overhead low. That’s why we don’t have any fancy buildings or anything like that.“
People have visited the store from many American states and from Kenya, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Russia. ”We are from Bristol, Connecticut, and we have our whole family with us this time. So we said, ‘Oh you gotta see this book fair,’ and so we brought them all here today. It meets every family’s need that likes to read, “said Tom Whitlon.
It’s a simple business ethic: give the people what they want. And despite what you may hear about electronic devices being the end of print, it looks like there are plenty of people who want nothing more than to settle in with a good book.
1. What is special about the bookstore?| A．It’s the only bookstore in the small town. | B．It’s about finding wonderful books by chance. |
| C．It not only sells books but also treasures. | D．It offers special prices for regular customers. |
| A．Playing it safe. | B．Keeping a low profile. |
| C．Saving the cost. | D．Showing due respect. |
| A．the bookstore offers books suitable for people of all ages |
| B．books may be replaced by the digital devices in the future |
| C．the bookstore has to be shut for a while due to poor business |
| D．the bookstore appeals to customers from all over the world |
| A．attract more people to visit the bookstore | B．satisfy the different needs of book lovers |
| C．highlight the business hours of the bookstore | D．explain the secret of the bookstore’s success |
【推荐2】The winner's guide to success
Do you know what makes people successful? To find out the answers, an American scholar recently visited some of the most successful people in America.
Be responsible for yourself.
Sometimes you may want to blame others for your failure to get ahead. In fact, when you say someone or something outside of yourself is stopping you from making success, you are giving away your own power.
Write a plan
It is very difficult to try to get what you want without a good plan. It is just like trying to drive through strange roads to a city far away.
Nothing great is easy to get. So you must be ready to work hard even harder than you have ever done. If you are not willing to pay the price, you won't get anything valuable.
Never give up
| A．A good plan is like a map to you. |
| B．It seems to us that everyone knows this. But it is easier said than done. |
| C．Some people achieve success much later in life because they didn’t work harder earlier. |
| D．You are saying they have more control over your life than you do. |
| E．Someone else's opinion of you doesn't have to become your reality. |
| F．Be willing to pay the price. |
| G．Here are some keys to success that they give. |
【推荐3】As human beings, we’re all guilty of getting things wrong occasionally, whether we are at work or in our personal lives.
●Step away from being perfect
When you’re not sure of your own self-worth, you wonder how other people are going to see you. If you don’t feel good about yourself, you might feel like there’s less room for error. The smallest mistake can feel like a disastrous error. Nobody’s perfect. You may make mistakes, especially when you’re starting out.
●Turn to social support
Your mistake might feel like a huge event in your life, but chances are others won’t see it as such a big deal. Reaching out to friends or family can help you see the bigger picture and feel more confident.
●
Accepting unavoidable mistakes might help to soften your blow. What you can do after making a mistake is accept that you’ve messed up and promise to be better tomorrow.
Forgiving yourself after making a mistake isn’t always an easy thing, and beating yourself up doesn’t benefit anyone—So it’s better for you to make changes and move on.
| A．Promise to do better. |
| B．Forgive others’ mistakes. |
| C．Some people are perfectionists. |
| D．That’s the way to forgive yourself. |
| E．Don’t expect perfection in everything you do. |
| F．However, the value of social support is often overlooked. |
| G．Here’s how we can forgive ourselves when facing our mistakes. |
【推荐1】Dolphins make a wide range of communicative sounds and also display something called vocal learning, which is the ability of an animal to modify its vocalization(声音)based on its experience with other animals.
Mainly, there are three types of dolphin vocalizations: whistles, clicks, and burst pulses. People still don’t know their precise meanings, but people do know that dolphins use their vocalizations as a way to communicate with one another.
The dolphin whistles are very high frequency sounds, partially above the range of human hearing. What’s fascinating is that each dolphin has a signature whistle, which is unique to each individual dolphin. It allows them to call to or identify each other.
No two signature whistles are same-sounding. As members of the same family, their signature whistles have similar elements. Dolphins use them as a contact calls. They call to each other while travelling and searching for food. It helps keep the group together and helps mother and children find each other. The uniqueness of each dolphin’s signature whistles is just like the following example: if you were travelling in the forest with one other person who was just out of sight, you would call out, “Are you there?” and the other person would respond. But if there were several people in the forest, you would have to call that person’s name.
In addition to whistles, dolphins produce clicks, which are actually sonar or sound waves. They use clicks to communicate, but more importantly to navigate and hunt. How? The sonar clicks bounce off objects and then the dolphins convert the incoming signals into a three dimensional picture, a mental map of what’s around them. The clicks are extremely sensitive and accurate. The sonar clicks are also very strong. One reason why dolphins swim side by side is to avoid interference from each other’s sonar clicks. Interference would be confusing and it would prevent them from getting an accurate picture of their surroundings. And what’s interesting is dolphins will turn off their sonar when another dolphin passes in front.
The third category of dolphin vocalizations is burst pulses. These are all the other sounds the dolphin makes-squeals, barks, groans and so on. Burst pulses are used to display dislike, claim their living area and attract a mate.
1. What is the reading passage mainly about?| A．How dolphins produce songs they want. |
| B．How dolphins teach their young to identify signature whistles. |
| C．How dolphins swim side by side to hunt. |
| D．How dolphins communicate with one another in various ways. |
| A．To show how united they are as a group. |
| B．To hear each other’s signature whistles. |
| C．To avoid interference with other dolphins’ sonar clicks. |
| D．To keep mothers close to their young. |
| A．The differences between land and marine mammals. |
| B．The importance of burst pulses as a way dolphins communicate. |
| C．One reason dolphins travel in large groups. |
| D．One way dolphins use signature whistles. |
| A．Human can easily hear the dolphin signature whistles. |
| B．A male dolphin shows his love to a female by using burst pulses. |
| C．Dolphins know what is around them by analyze the sonar they receive. |
| D．Dolphins can adjust their vocalizations to the surroundings. |
【推荐2】Two hours of screen time a day is enough to “dumb down” children or result in depression or physical illness, a global study has found.
The global study analyzed data measuring screen time, physical activity, mental health indicators and physical illness reported by 577, 000 children aged 11, 13 and 15 from 42 rich countries. It found that screen time—not including school work—averaged 6. 3 hours for boys and 5. 4 hours for girls.
The Australian-led study shows girls experience unhealthiness after just two hours watching screens including television, social media or online gaming. However, boys are more likely to be physically active, they can safely spend twice as much time on screens each day before suffering health problems.
Dr Khan said too much time spent watching TV, gaming or on social media could lead to “reduced learning abilities”. “If you spend more time on screens you are likely not to do well in your study performance.”
“We also found there were some benefits during the first hour of daily screen use, but bad effects on mental health kick in after 75 minutes in girls and 105 minutes in boys,” Dr Khan said. The solution to mental health the study found was an hour of physical activity, and no more than two hours a day using screens, apart from schoolwork. That is to say, children need to balance screen time with “green time” outdoors. Children who exercise or play outdoors regularly are healthier and happier, the study shows.
Melbourne dad, Tom Hindhaugh, said he tried to reduce screen time for his son, Patrick, 13. “Clearly we need those screens for homeschooling. Technology is the necessary way kids can communicate and hang out with each other,” he said. “But we need to get children outside and moving. Physical activity is the key for their health, whether it’s walking, riding a bike or kicking the football.”
1. What does the study focus on about children?| A．Their screen time. | B．Their health habits. |
| C．Their gender difference. | D．Their school performance. |
| A．Boys perform no better in study than girls. |
| B．Boys are better at physical activity than girls. |
| C．Girls spend more time on school work than boys. |
| D．Girls are more likely to suffer ill-health than boys. |
| A．The balance of school work. | B．The proper time of daily screens. |
| C．The advantage of green time. | D．The necessity of regular activities. |
| A．To express parents’ concern. | B．To show a successful example. |
| C．To support the writer’s opinion. | D．To present an education method. |
【推荐3】When a sharp chest pain woke me up around 3 A.M., I had the obvious question: Was this truly panic-worthy?
I thought about dialing 911, but then I noticed that… well, the pain was on the right side of my chest rather than the left. My breathing wasn’t labored. My heart wasn’t beating fast. So like millions before me, I compared my symptoms with those on the search engine. On top of the screen was an article entitled “16 Causes of Right Side Chest Pain.” Bingo, I thought—except it was an ad. I moved on to the actual search results, which were headlined “17 Causes of Pain in the Right Side of the Chest” and “26 Causes of Chest Pain & Tightness.” When I got to “3 Types of Chest Pain That Won’t Kill You,” I started wondering: What were all these weird articles?
The titles were about making use of search engine’s algorithm (算法) to grab people’s attention at their weak moments. This is called search-engine optimization, or SEO: the art and science of engineering for higher placement in the search results and getting people to click on the links. Unlike a lot of “medical information” online, SEO itself is in fact based on the scientific method called stand-out. We notice things that stand out—like oddly precise numbers.
I still needed information, though, so I clicked on a result from WebMD. I had seen that site before, and it didn’t seem like it contained fake information. I was barely a paragraph or two in when I noticed links about lung cancer symptoms. Huh? Lung cancer often causes no pain until its later stages. Then I realized that the information about lung cancer was an ad, but the “ad” sign was barely noticeable. During an emergency it is obviously not the best time to scare people into clicking links for unlikely diseases. Indeed, if you clicked on these “lung cancer symptoms,” the browser took you eventually to a site advertising a lung cancer medicine. Ugh.
Having medical information online be financed by advertisers or drug companies — or supplement manufacturers — is certainly not healthy. They often have an incentive (动机) to scare us. It’s a lose-lose situation. Sometimes we do need to be worried and seek medical care. Other times it’s just fearmongering clicks. But who can tell when one is in crisis?
1. When the author searched her symptoms online, she was trying to find out whether _____.| A．she needed to call for an ambulance immediately |
| B．she should visit a medical professional for advice |
| C．there was an effective medicine for her chest pain |
| D．her pain was a sign of some kind of heart problem |
16 Causes of Pain in the Right Side of the Chest that Won’t Kill You
| A．“16.” | B．“Causes of Pain.” |
| C．“Right Side of the Chest.” | D．“Kill You.” |
| A．Its information is too scary and worrying for browsers. |
| B．It is not a specialized website of lung cancer symptoms. |
| C．It is not designed for treating emergency situations. |
| D．It is probably sponsored by medical companies. |
【推荐1】The Government has proposed to spend money developing wireless charging roads in the UK as part of a E40 million plan. Wireless charging roads could be developed to recharge electric cars while they drive along to solve some problems about limited equipment to encourage ownership of these vehicles and ensure better air quality. The Government has promised the money to develop both on-street and wireless charging to help transformation from internal combustion engine（内燃机）cars to electric.
The mode of these systems work is similar to that of a Scalextric toy car does. Wireless charging uses a process called electromagnetic induction（电磁感应）to move energy. On the ground is a pad in which electricity is passed through a set of wire to generate a magnetic field. This is then moved to a receiver on the underside of the car. If the technology works, it could mean that drivers can fill up their car as they drive along, meaning there could be longer periods between charging.
The proposal was made in a Department for Transport (DfT) and could also see charging points positioned at service stations and car parks. New homes will also, where permitted, be built with some points. David Martell, of the electric car charging company Chargemaster, said to The Times: "Wireless charging will make driving an electric vehicle as similar as possible to driving a petrol car but without going to the petrol station frequently."
This is not the first time that wireless charging roads have been proposed as a number of firms have developed technologies. Renault partnered with Qualcomm Technologies and Vedecom to develop a road to test the technology's capability. The 100-metre test track was said to be capable of a charge up to 20 kilowatts at speeds up to, and over, 62 miles per hour (100kmh).
1. It can be inferred that the UK Government_______.| A．tries to solve problems of air pollution |
| B．supports the development of electric vehicles |
| C．has planned to introduce modern transportation |
| D．limits the use of internal combustion engine cars |
| A．How the electric cars get charged. |
| B．How the new technology benefits. |
| C．How the wireless road systems run. |
| D．How a Scalextric toy car functions. |
| A．It makes electric cars easy to drive. |
| B．It gets petrol cars unfavorable. |
| C．It gives rise to many new car parks. |
| D．It saves trips to petrol stations. |
| A．To announce the progress of the new technology. |
| B．To prove the effect of wireless charging roads. |
| C．To encourage the cooperation among different firms. |
| D．To show the efficiency of the wireless road systems. |
A test among students in grades 2, 4 and 6 found that they not only wrote faster by hand than by keyboard, but also created more ideas when composing essays with handwriting. And other research shows that the finger movements required to write by hand activate brain areas involved with thought, language, and short-term memory.
A recent Indiana University study had one group of children practice writing letters by hand while a second group just looked at those letters. Then, both groups of kids entered a functional MRI (核磁共振) that scanned their brains as the researchers showed them the same letters. Researchers found that the brain activity in the first group was far more advanced and “adult-like”.
Handwriting also affects other people’s way they think of adults and children. Several studies have shown that the same average essay will score much higher if written with good penmanship and much lower if written out in poor handwriting. These studies have also found that people judge the quality of a person’s ideas based on his or her handwriting. And the consequences are real: On standardized tests with handwritten sections, like the SAT, all essay that is considered hard to recognize gets a big zero.
Studies show that this isn’t only an English-language phenomenon. Chinese and Japanese youths are suffering from “character amnesia”. They can’t remember how to write characters, thanks to computers and text messaging. Some experts fear that Chinese writing and reading are so closely linked in the brain that China’s reading ability as a nation could suffer.
1. According to the passage, it can be learned that ________________.
| A．many researches have been done on handwriting |
| B．essays can’t be composed without handwriting |
| C．all children write faster by keyboard than by hand |
| D．most schools are trying to teach more handwriting |
| A．Children should practice writing letters |
| B．Handwriting can increase brain activity |
| C．It’s good for children to enter a functional MRI. |
| D．Letters should often be shown to children |
| A．Handwriting affects both adults and children. |
| B．Handwriting helps a person write better essays. |
| C．SAT should be done with good handwriting. |
| D．Good handwriting makes a person seem smarter. |
| A．Essays written with keyboards will get lower scores. |
| B．The quality of your ideas depends on your handwriting. |
| C．Chinese and Japanese youths don’t know how to write. |
| D．Less handwriting may affect China’s reading ability. |
| A．keyboards are more popular than handwriting |
| B．we shouldn’t judge people by their handwriting |
| C．handwriting is of great importance |
| D．it’s time to give up using keyboards |
【推荐3】Before the introduction of Little Golden Books in, 1942, children’s books weren’t necessarily made with children’s interests in mind. They were usually large volumes that were too difficult for young readers to handle or comprehend, and were sold at $ 2 to $ 3 each (that’s about $ 28-$ 42 today). But an American named Georges Duplaix wanted to change all that. He thought the solution was small, inexpensive books with fewer pages, simpler stories, and more illustrations so little kids could actually enjoy them. And so Little Golden Books appeared.
The first 12 titles of Little Golder-Books were released on October 1, 1942, at a price of only a quarter dollar. After only five months on the market, 1.5 million copies had been sold and many titles were already in their third printing. One of the keys to their huge sales was the fact that they were available in unusual places, such as department stores, drug stores, and supermarkets. Busy parents could keep their too energetic children occupied while they did their things.
The Poky Little Puppy of these original titles became the best-selling children’s book of the 20th century—a total of 14,898,341 copies were sold, but many Little Golden Books were also sold in impressive numbers. By 1967 more than 200 Little Golden Books had sold 1 million copies each. In 2002 the leading book brand (品牌) celebrated its 60th anniversary with l,200 unique titles and 2 billion books sold in nearly every country.
The books, of course, couldn’t stay $ 0.25 forever, although it did take 20 years before the price jumped to $ 0.29. The price continued to rise over the years, but still stayed under a dollar for decades. Currently, Little Golden Books retail (零售) for $ 3.99. Interestingly, collecting Little Golden Books has become a hobby. Most first editions are available for around $ 15. But if you just want to enjoy the stories, Little Golden Books are a hot item at thrift stores (日货店) , where they can often be purchased as low as $ 0.25.
1. What do we know about children’s books before 1942?| A．They were carefully designed and decorated. |
| B．They usually told old simple stories. |
| C．They suited a particular group of readers. |
| D．They were costly and unfriendly to kids. |
| A．Using various titles to meet readers diverse needs. |
| B．Impressing readers with different printing editions. |
| C．Being available to parents shopping with their kids. |
| D．Placing advertisements in public places with many kids. |
| A．Its long history. | B．Its pricing strategy. |
| C．Its considerable success. | D．Its popularity among collectors. |
| A．Working with more local thrift stores. |
| B．Remaining affordable for most people. |
| C．Winning the hearts of various age groups. |
| D．Expanding its influence on the retail market. |
