We have long been attracted by quick solutions that could increase our intelligence. Today, people’s hopes lie in brain training apps, some of which claim to result in smarter minds”. But is this quick solutions all that it is said to be?
There are plenty of brain training apps, but they all share the same characteristics: they turn mental exercises like simple arithmetic, memory tests and logic and pattern-matching problems into quick games. The more you play these mini-games, the smarter you will get — or so some apps tell us. It is really a big promise.
Many of the apps say they are backed by “science”, a claim I found surprising as a former neuroscientist. The concept that increasing intelligence would be as simple as practicing a few mini-games every day goes against what we have discovered about how humans think and learn.
After surveying a diverse spread of thousands of users across wide variety of apps, researchers at Western University in Canada discovered that “brain training has no appreciable effect on cognitive functioning in the ‘real world’, even after extensive training periods”. The positive effects that have been found are limited to the very specific mini-games and tasks that users are trained on, such as the ability to memorize lists of words or numbers, or perform mental arithmetic, with little benefit to other skills.
If you are expecting them to improve your ability to write novel or construct a complex spreadsheet, I am afraid you will want to look elsewhere.
Puzzle video games such as “Baba Is You” and “Returno the Obra Dinn” see players apply their skill at logic, memory and concentration in a far more complex way than any brain training mini-game.
1. What does the author say about brain training apps?| A．They have scientific support. | B．They work in the form of games. |
| C．They require problem-solving skills. | D．They are based on complex arithmetic. |
| A．Supporting evidence for some brain training apps. |
| B．A detailed description of some brain training apps. |
| C．A further explanation of the use of some brain training apps. |
| D．Questioning the exaggerated effects of some brain training apps. |
| A．Limited. | B．Tremendous. | C．Damaging. | D．Far-reaching. |
| A．A storybook. | B．A diary. | C．A magazine. | D．A biography. |
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【推荐1】By the year 2050, a fifth of the world’s cities will experience unprecedented climate conditions and environments that currently don’t exist in any major cities, according to new research. A team of scientists at the Crowther Lab in Switzerland produced the report, which described the climate for 520 major cities 30 years in the future.
The results showed that 77 percent of the world’s cities will experience a surprising change in climate conditions by 2050, and 22 percent of the 520 cities will see conditions that are not currently experienced by any existing major cities.
In China in 2050, the climate of Xi’an, in Shanxi province, will be similar to that of current day Maseru, the capital city of Lesotho in southern Africa, with the maximum temperature of the warmest month likely to increase by 4.59℃. Chongqing in southwest China will resemble the climate of Swaziland capital Mbabane, as the warmest temperature is predicted to rise by 5.1℃.
Scientists predict summers in Europe will get warmer by an average of 3.5℃ and European winters will see temperature rises of 4.7℃. London’s climate will be more similar lo Barcelona, and Madrid’s to Marrakech.
The Crowther Lab hopes the analysis will motivate decision-makers to take necessary steps to prevent or address some of the climate effects due to the threat of climate change. The report also found that cities in tropical regions will experience smaller changes in average temperature but will be controlled by shifts in rainfall regimes. This may lead to a noticeable increase in unexpected events, and severe droughts.
“Across all scientific fields, the greatest challenge in climate science is no longer the precise measurement of climate change impacts, but inspiring people to picture is actual effects in order to motivate action,” said Tom Crowther, senior scientist und founder of the Crowther Lab.
1. According to the research, among the 520 cities by 2050, about ________ cities will experience the climate conditions that no major cities currently have experienced.| A．400 | B．114 | C．260 | D．104 |
| A．By listing figures. | B．By making comparisons. |
| C．By doing experiments. | D．By explaining theory. |
| A．To compare the climate change of the major cities of the world. |
| B．To inspire people to picture its actual effects in order to motivate action. |
| C．To inspire decision-makers to take necessary steps to prevent some climate effects. |
| D．To show most word’s cities will experience a striking change in climate conditions. |
| A．World Temperature | B．Current Climate Change |
| C．Big Titles in the World | D．Future Climate Change in Most Big Cities |
【推荐2】A food additive (添加剂) is any substance that is added to food. Many people are put off by the idea of “chemicals in food.” The truth is that all food is made up of chemicals. Natural substances like milk, as well as man-made ones like drinks on sale in the market, can be described by chemical formulas. Some chemical substances are indeed harmful, but a person who refused to consume any chemicals would find nothing to eat.
The things we eat can be divided into natural and man-made substances. Some people feel that only natural foods are healthy and that all man-made ingredients are to be avoided. But many natural chemicals, found in plants and animals, are harmful when eaten, and some laboratory-made substances increase the nutritional value of food. Other chemicals have natural and man-made forms that are exactly alike: vitamin C is vitamin C, whether it comes from a test tube or from an orange. Like “chemical”, “man-made” doesn’t necessarily mean “not fit to eat”.
Food additives are used for many reasons. We add sugar and salt and other things to foods we prepare at home to make them taste better. Food producers have developed a range of additives that stabilize, thicken, harden, keep wet, keep firm, or improve the appearance of their products. Additives can make food more convenient or nutritious, give it a longer shelf life, and make it more attractive to the consumer, thus increasing the sales and profits of the producers.
Food additives are presently the centre of a storm of serious argument. Food producers have been known to use additives that have not been proved safe; some substances in common use have been proved unsafe and have been taken off the market. Many people feel there’s a risk of eating food to which anything has been added. But food additives are now regulated by the FDA of the federal government, and new additives will go through strict testing before they can be placed on the market. For most people, the chances of developing serious side effects (副作用) from the long-term use of presently approved (批准) food additives are very small.
1. From the passage we can learn that .| A．natural foods are much safer than man-made ones |
| B．it is right to refuse chemicals in food |
| C．food additives are harmful to our health |
| D．all foods have chemical substances |
| A．Food additives can improve the quality of foods in many ways. |
| B．To ensure food safety, the FDA will stop food additives. |
| C．Foods free of additives can keep a much longer shelf life. |
| D．Foods with more additives have higher nutritional value. |
| A．new additives will be approved more easily than before |
| B．food with common-used additives will be taken off the market |
| C．food additives will be used in a safer and more scientific way |
| D．food producers won’t be allowed to use new food additives |
| A．worrying | B．acceptable |
| C．poisonous | D．avoidable |
【推荐3】Several years ago, I began asking my friends and family to tell me something about their passwords. Yes, I understand why passwords are universally hated: the pressure they put on our memory and the endless demand to update them. I hate them too. But there is more to passwords than their annoyance. In the fact that we construct them so that we can remember them, they take on secret lives.
There was a former prisoner whose password includes what used to be his prison ID number to constantly tell him not to go back. And there was a childless 45-year-old woman whose password is the name of the baby she lost in her 25 (her way of trying to keep him alive, I guess).
Sometimes the passwords were playful. Several people said they used “incorrect” for theirs so that when they forgot it, the software automatically promoted them with the right one (“your password is incorrect”).
Some passwords were striking for their uniqueness. After reading Sheryl Sandberg’s book Lean in: Women, Work and the Will to Lead, Cortni Kerr, a running partner of mine, found her role model and began using “Wwssdol9”, which stood for “What would Sheryl Sandberg do” plus “19” for the year (2019) of the password’s creation. “TnsitTpsif” was the password of another friend, a computer scientist who loves wordplay. It stood for “The next sentence is true. The previous sentence is false”. For my friend, it was a playful reference to the knots that language can tie.
The 4622 that my wife used in her passwords was not just the address of her father’s childhood home but also a reminder of his strength. Apparently, when the former 120 kg football standout was a small boy, he had to sing his home address (4622 South 28th West Avenue) in one full breath rather than try to say it normally. Otherwise, his stutter (口吃) would embarrass him.
1. Why did the prisoner use his prison ID number in his password?| A．To rebuild his reputation. | B．To remind him to act legally. |
| C．To fight against his poor memory. | D．To hide the unpleasant experience. |
| A．Doubtful. | B．Interesting. |
| C．Creative. | D．Inspiring. |
| A．The reasons why people hate passwords |
| B．The unusual passwords |
| C．The secret lives of passwords |
| D．The best ways to make your passwords unique |
【推荐1】During the last twenty years there has been increasing concern with the quality of the environment. Along with air and water pollutants, noise pollution has been considered as a serious pollutant. As noise levels have risen, the effects of noise have become more obvious.
Noise is described as “unwanted sound”. Causes of noise pollution include traffic, aircraft, rock bands, barking dogs, television, garbage trucks, and noise from neighbors, voices, alarms, and boats. Studies show that over forty percent of Americans are disturbed at home or lose sleep because of noise pollution.
Noise has bad effects on people and the environment. Noise causes hearing loss, interferes (干扰) with human activities at home and work, and is in various ways dangerous to people’s health and well-being.
When we think, talk, listen to music, or sleep, we need quiet. Even low levels of noise can be annoying or frustrating. Sudden increases in volume can make sounds annoying. The quieter the background is, the more penetrating a noise can be.
Noise can also make instructions or warning unclear, resulting in accidents. Louder noise bursts can cause more problems. Continued stress caused by living in noisy conditions can lead to high blood pressure, which is the major cause of some diseases.
Long exposure to noise levels above eighty-five decibels (分贝) can damage inner ear cells and lead to hearing loss. Noise can result in the uncontrolled fear response and can cause adrenaline (肾上腺素) to be pumped into the bloodstream, the heart rate to quicken, muscles to tense, breathing to go up, and the digestive system to slow down.
Local government has the responsibility to fight noise pollution. For example, it can regulate the speed of trains through their community. On the other hand, a responsible citizen will never make noise pollution wherever he is.
1. What does the underlined word “penetrating” in Paragraph 4 mean?| A．High and exciting. | B．Deep and shocking |
| C．Loud and unpleasant. | D．Clear and comfortable. |
| A．Fast digestive system. | B．Low blood pressure. |
| C．Slow heart rate. | D．Fast breathing. |
| A．people who make noise pollution should be punished |
| B．the government should be responsible for fighting noise pollution |
| C．the government should offer its people better education on noise pollution |
| D．people and the government should work together to reduce noise pollution |
| A．Measurement of noise levels. | B．Bad effects of noise pollution. |
| C．Hearing damage from environmental noise. | D．Community reactions to noise. |
【推荐2】El Nino, a Spanish term for “the Christ child”, was named by South American fisherman who noticed that the global weather pattern, which happens every two to seven years, reduced the amount of fishes caught around Christmas. El Nino sees warm water, collected over several years in the western Pacific, flow back eastwards when winds that normally blow westwards weaken, or sometimes the other way round.
The weather effects, both good and bad, are felt in many places. Rich countries gain more from powerful Nino, on balance, than they lose. A study found that a strong Nino in 1997-98 helped American’s economy grow by $15 billion, partly because of better agricultural harvest: farmers in the Midwest gained from extra rain. The total rise in agricultural incomes in rich countries in growth is greater than the fall in poor ones.
But in Indonesia extremely dry forests are in flames. A multi-year drought in south-east Brazil is becoming worse. Though heavy rains brought about by El Nino may relieve the drought in California, they are likely to cause surface flooding and other disasters.
The most recent powerful Nino, in 1997-98, killed around 21,000 people and caused damage worth $36 billion around the globe. But such Ninos come with months of warning, and so much is known about how they happen that governments can prepare. According to the Overseas Development Institute (ODI), however, just 12% of disaster-relief funding in the past two decades has gone on reducing risks in advance, rather than recovery and rebuilding afterwards. This is despite evidence that a dollar spent on risk-reduction saves at least two on reconstruction.
Simple improvements to infrastructure(基础设施) can reduce the spread of disease. Better sewers make it less likely that heavy rain is followed by an outbreak of the disease of bad stomach. Stronger bridges mean villages are less likely to be left without food and medicine after floods. According to a paper in 2011 by Mr. Hsiang and co-authors, civil conflict is related to El Nino’s harmful effects—and the poorer the country, the stronger the link. Though the relationship may not be causal, helping divided communities to prepare for disasters would at least reduce the risk that those disasters are followed by killing and wounding people. Since the poorest are least likely to make up for their losses from disasters linked to El Nino, reducing their losses needs to be the priority.
1. What can we learn about El Nino in Paragraph 1?| A．It is named after a South American fisherman. |
| B．It takes place almost every year all over the world. |
| C．It forces fishermen to stop catching fish around Christmas. |
| D．It sees the changes of water flow direction in the ocean. |
| A．more investment should go to risk reduction |
| B．governments of poor countries need more aid |
| C．victims of El Nino deserve more compensation |
| D．recovery and reconstruction should come first |
| A．To introduce El Nino and its origin. |
| B．To explain the consequences of El Nino. |
| C．To show ways of fighting against El Nino. |
| D．To urge people to prepare for El Nino. |
【推荐3】It’s hardly an exaggeration (夸张): The Black Death in the 14th century gave rise to the Renaissance. I came across this curious information in A History of Knowledge, a well-written book by Charles Van Doren.
Of course, the key tool in this revolution was the printing press, which Johannes Gutenberg had perfected by 1450, when he started printing his first books.
But for printing to become a mass industry there would have to be enough people and a demand for books, and of course, the people would also need to have the money to buy those books. On the other hand, printers would have to make sure that the supply of books could keep up with the demand.
The Black Death gave rise to those conditions that would speed up the growth of publishing. Since around 1355, the plague (瘟疫) had been forcing people to flee to Western Europe from Byzantium, one of the cities where the plague started. It so happened that Byzantium was an important seat of power, and also of culture. So among the refugees (难民) were a lot of people educated through Greek and Roman works. They also brought along manuscripts (手稿) of those works.
By 1450, these refugees had aroused a desire for learning among the people in their adopted lands. So that took care of the demand.
Then, with so many people dead, so many worldly possessions were left without owners. These included land, houses, jewelry, and clothes. Of course, those who survived the plague got hold of these things, because there was so much to go around for everyone.
As for sources of works to print, plenty of manuscripts had been brought by refugees. As for paper, spare clothes could be used to make rag paper, a cheaper and better alternative (选择) than vellum or parchment, both of which would have to be made from animal skins. So thousands of works that only the rich could have bought in the form of expensive manuscripts became available to a lot more people in the form of cheaper books.
1. What’s the purpose of the text?| A．To recommend a book. |
| B．To introduce a historical figure. |
| C．To show the great harm of a plague. |
| D．To explain the role of an awful disaster. |
| A．A lot of them were educated. |
| B．Most of them were wealthy people. |
| C．They led a hard life on the new land. |
| D．They brought with them new printing skills. |
| A．They found a lot of jewelry. |
| B．They got a lot of ownerless things. |
| C．They worked hard after the plague. |
| D．They were offered more chances than others. |
| A．They created the demand for reading. |
| B．They helped lower the costs of books. |
| C．They helped people survive the plague. |
| D．They inspired the invention of rag paper. |
