1 . Every decision we make is arrived at through hugely complex neurological processing. Although it feels as though you have a choice, the action that you ‘decide’ to take is entirely directed by automatic neural activity. Brain imaging studies show that a person’s action can be predicted by their brain activity up to 10 seconds before they themselves become aware they are going to act. Multiple neuroscientific studies show that even those important decisions that feel worked out are just as automatic as knee-jerk reactions (膝跳反应) (although more complex).
Decision-making starts with the amygdala: a set of two almond-shaped nuclei (杏仁状核) buried deep within the brain, which generate emotion. The amygdala registers the information streaming in through our senses and responds to it in less than a second, sending signals throughout the brain. These produce an urge to run, fight, freeze or grab, according to how the amygdala values various stimuli.
Before we act on the amygdala’s signals, however, the information is usually processed by other brain areas, including some that produce conscious thoughts and emotions. Areas concerned with recognition work out what’s going on, those concerned with memory compare it with previous experiences, and those concerned with reasoning, judging and planning get to work on constructing various action plans. The best plan—if we are lucky—is then selected and carried out. If any of this process goes wrong, we are likely to hesitate, or do something silly.
The various stages of decision-making are marked by different types of brain activity. Fast (gamma)waves, with frequencies of 25 to 100 Hz, produce a keen awareness of the multiple factors that need to be taken into account to arrive at a decision. If you are trying to choose a sandwich, for instance, gamma waves generated in various cells within the ‘taste’ area of the brain bring to mind and compare the taste of ham, hummus, wholemeal, sourdough, and so on. Although it may seem useful to be aware of the full range of choice, too much information makes decision-making more difficult, so irrelevant factors get dismissed quickly and unconsciously.
After this comparison stage, the brain switches to slow-wave activity (12 to 30 Hz). This extinguishes most of the gamma activity, leaving just a single ‘hotspot’ of gamma waves which marks the chosen option.
Although there is no ‘you’ outside your brain to direct what it’s doing, you can help it to make good decisions by placing yourself in a situation which is likely to make the process run more smoothly. Doing something that is physically or mentally stimulating before making a decision will help your brain produce the initial gamma waves that generate awareness of the competing options. Getting over-excited, on the other hand, will prevent the switch to the slow brainwaves, making it much harder to single out a choice.
1. Why does the writer mention “knee-jerk reactions” in the first paragraph?| A．To introduce the finding of the latest brain imaging studies. |
| B．To illustrate that decisions are not consciously thought out. |
| C．To call attention to a kind of neural reaction that is not very complex. |
| D．To show the difference between decision-making and other brain activity. |
| A．It works out conscious thoughts and emotions. |
| B．It selects the best action plan for a given situation. |
| C．It dismisses factors that are irrelevant to the decision to be made. |
| D．It processes sensory information and generates emotional responses. |
| A．Slow-wave activity usually lasts longer than fast-wave activity. |
| B．The brain prioritizes information before settling on a final choice. |
| C．Decision-making is difficult when slow-wave activity occurs first. |
| D．The brain needs as much information as possible to make a decision. |
| A．By preparing the brain to single out the most reasonable choice. |
| B．By helping the brain switch to slow-wave activity more quickly. |
| C．By getting the brain to focus on those most relevant alternatives. |
| D．By making the brain more aware of the factors and choices involved. |
2 . On March 7, 1907, the English statistician Francis Galton published a paper which illustrated what has come to be known as the “wisdom of crowds” effect. The experiment of estimation he conducted showed that in some cases, the average of a large number of independent estimates could be quite accurate.
This effect capitalizes on the fact that when people make errors, those errors aren’t always the same. Some people will tend to overestimate, and some to underestimate. When enough of these errors are averaged together, they cancel each other out, resulting in a more accurate estimate. If people are similar and tend to make the same errors, then their errors won’t cancel each other out. In more technical terms, the wisdom of crowds requires that people’s estimates be independent. If for whatever reasons, people’s errors become correlated or dependent, the accuracy of the estimate will go down.
But a new study led by Joaquin Navajas offered an interesting twist (转折) on this classic phenomenon. The key finding of the study was that when crowds were further divided into smaller groups that were allowed to have a discussion, the averages from these groups were more accurate than those from an equal number of independent individuals. For instance, the average obtained from the estimates of four discussion groups of five was significantly more accurate than the average obtained from 20 independent individuals.
In a follow-up study with 100 university students, the researchers tried to get a better sense of what the group members actually did in their discussion. Did they tend to go with those most confident about their estimates? Did they follow those least willing to change their minds? This happened some of the time, but it wasn’t the dominant response. Most frequently, the groups reported that they “shared arguments and reasoned together”. Somehow, these arguments and reasoning resulted in a global reduction in error. Although the studies led by Navajas have limitations and many questions remain, the potential implications for group discussion and decision-making are enormous.
1. What is paragraph 2 of the text mainly about?| A．The methods of estimation. | B．The underlying logic of the effect. |
| C．The causes of people’s errors. | D．The design of Galton’s experiment. |
| A．the crowds were relatively small | B．there were occasional underestimates |
| C．individuals did not communicate | D．estimates were not fully independent |
| A．The size of the groups. | B．The dominant members. |
| C．The discussion process. | D．The individual estimates. |
| A．Unclear. | B．Dismissive. | C．Doubtful. | D．Approving. |
3 . Think back to when you were in a maths classroom, and the teacher set a difficult problem. Which of the two following responses is closer to the way you reacted?
A: Oh no, this is too hard for me. I’m not even going to seriously try and work it out.
B: Ah, this is quite tricky, but I like to push myself. Even if I don’t get the answer right, maybe I’ll learn something in the attempt.
Early in her career, the psychologist Carol Dweck of Stanford University gave a group of ten-year-olds problems that were slightly too hard for them. One group reacted positively and loved the challenge. She says they had a ‘growth mindset’ and are focused on what they can achieve in the future. But another group of children felt that their intelligence was being judged and they had failed. They had a ‘fixed mindset’ and were unable to imagine improving. Some of them looked for someone who had done worse than them to boost their self-esteem.
Professor Dweck believes that there is a problem in education at the moment. For years, children have been praised for their intelligence or talent, but this makes them vulnerable (脆弱的) to failure. They become performance-oriented, wanting to please by getting high grades, but they are not interested in learning for its own sake. The solution, according to Dweck, is to lead them to become mastery-oriented (i.e., interested in getting better at something). She claims that the ever-lasting effort over time is the key to outstanding achievement.
Psychologists have been testing these theories. Underperforming school children on a Native American reservation were exposed to growth mindset techniques for a year. The results were nothing less than incredible. They came top in regional tests, beating children from much more privileged backgrounds. These children had previously felt that making an effort was a sign of stupidity, but they came to see it as the key to learning.
1. What can we learn about a person if his answer is closer to “B”?| A．He is performance-oriented. |
| B．He tends to set limits to his life. |
| C．He enjoys the process and focuses on the future. |
| D．He boosts his self-esteem by comparing with others. |
| A．To reward children for their high grades. | B．To emphasize the importance of intelligence. |
| C．To ignore the result brought by failure. | D．To praise children for their engagement in the process. |
| A．Children showing no interest in learning. |
| B．Children who use fixed mindset techniques. |
| C．Children from much more privileged backgrounds. |
| D．Underperforming school children on a Native American reservation. |
| A．To distinguish growth mindset and fixed mindset. |
| B．To inform readers of the importance of growth mindset. |
| C．To show several psychological study results. |
| D．To point out a problem in education at the moment. |
4 . According to a new study from Cornell University, about one-fifth of the global population, of 2 billion people worldwide, will be forced to resettle or go deeper inland by 2100 due to the continuous rise in sea level.
The study, published in the journal Land Use Policy, showed that the growing global population could make the matter worse. The researchers expected that there are about 1.4 billon “climate change refugees(难民)” in the world by 2060 and by 2100 the number of the displaced people due to the rising sea level could reach up to two billion.
“We’re going to have more people on less land and sooner than we think,” said lead author Charles Geisler, professor at Cornell. “The future rise in global average sea level probably won’t be gradual. Yet few policy makers are observing the significant barriers that coastal climate refugees, like other refugees, will run into when they move to higher ground.”
For the study, the researchers reviewed(回顾) potential problems that climate change refugees may face if they go deeper inland. The researchers identified these land difficulties with relocation using three organizing groups. Including depletion(损耗) zones, win-lose zones and no-trespass(不得擅自进入) zones. By doing so, the researchers were able to provide primary estimates of their toll(损失) on inland resettlement space. The researchers found that some inland regions were unlikely to support new waves of climate change refugees due to the remains of war, road developments and rare natural resources.
Apart from the rising sea level, increasing storm weather and the booming global population are also having a huge influence on the number of climate change refugees. Storm can push seawater further inland. The increasing global population requires more land even as the ocean swallows up rich costal zones and river deltas(三角洲). These force people to search for new places to move to higher ground.
1. What would happen if the sea level were to rise?| A．2 billion people would be “refugees” by 2060. |
| B．50% of the population would lose their homes. |
| C．Inland regions would become more crowded. |
| D．Coastal regions would be polluted seriously. |
| A．The sea level will go up in a little-by-little way. |
| B．Moving to higher land isn’t the key solution. |
| C．Land and population vary according to climate change. |
| D．Policy makers should think more for climate change refugees. |
| A．Because they can’t live a common life there. |
| B．Because they can’t adapt to the climate there. |
| C．Because they may consume more than expected. |
| D．Because they will destroy the natural resources. |
| A．Global warming is a double-edged sword. |
| B．In the future climate will become worse. |
| C．The earth will see more climate change refugees. |
| D．Sea will bring humans more disadvantages. |
5 . If you look across the entire lifespan, what you see is an average increase in desirable personality traits（特点）.Psychologists call this the “maturity principle” and it’s comforting to know that, assuming your personality follows a typical course, then the older you get, the maturer you will become. However, it’s not such good news for young adolescents, because at this point, something known as the “disruption hypothesis” kicks in.
Consider a study of Dutch teenagers who completed personality tests each year for six or seven years from 2005. The boys showed a temporary dip in conscientiousness—orderliness and self-discilpline in early adolescence, and the girls showed a temporary increase in neuroticism—emotional instability. This seems to back up some of the stereotypes we have of messy teen bedrooms and mood swings. Thankfully, this decline in personality is short-lived, with the Dutch data showing that the teenagers’ previous positive traits rebound（反弹）in later adolescence.
Both parents and their teenage children agree that changes occur, but surprisingly, the perceived change can depend on who is measuring, according to a 2017 study of over 2,700 German teenagers. They rated their own personalities twice, at age 11 and age 14, and their parents also rated their personalities at these times. Some differences emerged: for instance, while the teenagers rated themselves as declining in agreeability, their parents saw this decline as much shaper. Also, the teens saw themselves as increasingly extroverted（外向的）, but their parents saw them as increasingly introverted.
This mismatch can perhaps be explained by the big changes underway in the parent-child relationship brought on by teenagers’ growing desire for autonomy and privacy. The researchers point out that parents and teens might also be using different reference points—parents are measuring their teenagers’ traits against a typical adult, while the teenagers are comparing their own traits against those displayed by their peers.
This is in line with several further studies, which also reveal a pattern of a temporary reduction in advantageous traits in early adolescence. The general picture of the teenage years as a temporary personality “disruption” therefore seems accurate. In fact, we’re only just beginning to understand the complex mix of genetic and environmental factors that contribute to individual patterns of personality change.
Studies also offer some clues for how we might create more nurturing environments for teenagers to aid their personality development. This is an approach worth pushing further given that teenage personality traits are predictive of experiences in later life. For instance, one British study of over 4,000 teenagers showed that those who scores lower in conscientiousness were twice as likely to be unemployed later in life, in comparison with those who scored higher.
People focus so much on teaching teenagers facts and getting them to pass exams, but perhaps they ought to pay at least as much attention to helping nurture their personalities.
1. Which of the following can be an example of “disruption hypothesis”?| A．A kindergarten kid cries over a toy. |
| B．A boy in high school cleans his own room. |
| C．A teenage girl feels sad for unknown reason. |
| D．A college graduate feels stressed out by work. |
| A．parent give their teens too much automony and privacy |
| B．teens are more optimistic about their personality changes |
| C．teens and parents have the same personality rating standard |
| D．parents and teens can later agree on teens’ personality decline |
| A．teens should pay less attention to their scores in exams |
| B．developing teens’ personality has a long-term effect in their life |
| C．people’s success in later life depends on teenage personality traits |
| D．environmental factors outweigh genetic ones for personality change |
| A．Dissatisfied. | B．Approving. | C．Neutral. | D．Cautious. |
6 . A robot created by Washington State University (WSU) scientists could help elderly people with dementia (痴呆) and other limitations live independently in their own homes.
The Robot Activity Support System, or RAS, uses sensors installed in a WSU smart home to determine where its residents are, what they are doing and when they need assistance with daily activities. It navigates (定位) through rooms and around obstacles to find people on its own, provides video instructions on how to do simple tasks and can even lead its owner to objects like their medication or a snack in the kitchen.
“RAS combines the convenience of a mobile robot with the activity detection technology of a WSU smart home to provide assistance in the moment, as the need for help is detected,” said Bryan Minor, a postdoctoral researcher in the WSU School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science.
Currently, an estimated 50 percent of adults over the age of 85 need assistance with every day activities such as preparing meals and taking medication and the annual cost for this assistance in the US is nearly $2 trillion. With the number of adults over 85 expected to triple by 2050, researchers hope that technologies like RAS and the WSU smart home will relieve some of the financial strain on the healthcare system by making it easier for older adults to live alone.
RAS is the first robot researchers have tried to incorporate into their smart home environment. They recently published a study in the journal Cognitive Systems Research that demonstrates how RAS could make life easier for older adults struggling to live independently.
“While we are still in an early stage of development, our initial results with RAS have been promising,” Minor said. “The next step in the research will be to test RAS’ performance with a group of older adults to get a better idea of what prompts, video reminders and other preferences they have regarding the robot.”
1. How does RAS serve elderly people?| A．Through sensors. | B．Through objects. |
| C．Through a mobile robot. | D．Through their daily activities. |
| A．It is the first robot used in daily life. | B．Its function remains to be tested. |
| C．It can locate people and do any task. | D．It can cook for owners on its own. |
| A．Doubtful. | B．Negative. |
| C．Optimistic. | D．Uncertain. |
| A．Elderly people leave the nursing home. |
| B．Smart Home Tests first elder-Care robot. |
| C．RAS, the first robot to make home smart. |
| D．Older adults have benefited from RAS. |
7 . When we saw a programme on TV about a Christmas trip to Lapland, we knew our four children would love it.
In October, we got the children to write Christmas
Our departure day arrived in mid-December. There was an explosion of excitement as we parked and
It was all worth it. The look on their faces as we
If that wasn’t
Those four days in Lapland will
| A．Bringing | B．Taking | C．Putting | D．Carrying |
| A．action | B．performance | C．experience | D．adventure |
| A．letters | B．messages | C．cards | D．stories |
| A．asked | B．warned | C．persuaded | D．reminded |
| A．fixed | B．loaded | C．delivered | D．packed |
| A．hardly | B．completely | C．actually | D．hopefully |
| A．checked in | B．dropped by | C．showed off | D．looked back |
| A．landed | B．appeared | C．poured | D．entered |
| A．useless | B．harmless | C．priceless | D．careless |
| A．seated | B．flew | C．moved | D．rode |
| A．cap | B．beard | C．fur | D．stick |
| A．covered | B．buried | C．charged | D．filled |
| A．enough | B．perfect | C．possible | D．welcome |
| A．judged | B．recognized | C．noticed | D．observed |
| A．made | B．cheered | C．reached | D．picked |
| A．photo | B．book | C．poster | D．gift |
| A．exactly | B．partly | C．naturally | D．particularly |
| A．work | B．remain | C．change | D．send |
| A．game | B．camp | C．trip | D．task |
| A．mind | B．power | C．light | D．life |
8 . Although small business training and credit programs have become more common throughout the world, little attention has been paid to the need of young people, and even less to the children living on the street or in difficult condition.
Over the past nine years, Street Kids International (S.K.I.) has been working with partner organizations in Africa, Latin America and India to support the economic lives of street children and develop opportunities for street children to earn income.
The S.K.I. Bicycle Courier Service first started in the Sudan. Street children who took part in it were given bicycles, which they used to deliver parcels and messages. A similar program was taken up in Bangalore, India. The Shoe Shine Collective was a program with the Y.W.C.A. in the Dominican Republic. The children in this project were lent money to buy shoe shine boxes. They were also given a safe place to store their equipment, and facilities for individual savings plans. The Youth Skills Enterprise Initiative in Zambia is a program with the Red Cross Society and the Y.W.C.A. Street youths are supported to start their own small business through business training, life skills training and access to credit.
During the program, The S.K.I. and partner organizations have drawn lessons from the past: First of all, being a businessman is not for everyone, nor for every street child. And it is important for all loans to be linked to training programs that include the development of basic business and life skills. Secondly, small loans are provided firstly for buying fixed assets such as bicycles, shoe shine kits and basic building materials for a market stall. As the children gain experience, they can be given more loan amounts. And all S.K.L. programs have charged interest on the loans. Generally the rates have been lower than bank rates. Most importantly, it is believed that credit must be given with other types of support that help the young develop key life skills as well as productive businesses.
1. How does S.K.I. help the street children?| A．By giving the street children chances to go to school. |
| B．By encouraging the public to give money to street children. |
| C．By creating chances for street children to make money. |
| D．By drawing the attention of governments to help street children. |
| A．The Dominican Republic | B．Zambia |
| C．India | D．Sudan |
| A．clothing | B．vehicle | C．equipment | D．belongings |
| A．each child can only enjoy one kind of loan |
| B．not all loans should be linked to training programs |
| C．any child can apply for the business training and loan |
| D．the children have to pay back slightly more money than they borrow |
9 . Google previously announced successful tests of machine learning systems designed to assist doctors. In one case, Google reported AI had examined eye diseases with equal accuracy to doctors. Other tests showed that machine learning can be used to study large amounts of patient data to predict future medical events.
Now the company has published two new studies showing a high level of success in identifying metastatic breast cancer. Metastatic means that cancer has spread from its main area to other parts of the body. Metastatic breast cancer is one of the deadliest, causing about 90 percent of all breast cancer deaths worldwide.
In metastatic breast cancer patients, the cancer often travels to nearby lymph nodes(淋巴结). Usually doctors examine lymph node tissue under a microscope to see whether cancer is present. Google notes that previous studies have shown that up to one-fourth of metastatic lymph node classifications end up being changed after a second examination. In addition, studies show that small metastatic material can be missed up to 67 percent of the time when examinations happen under extreme time restrictions.
Google says it created a mathematical algorithm(算法). The algorithm, called Lymph Node Assistant, is trained to find characteristics of tissue affected by metastatic cancer. When the system examined tissue images(图像), it was able to differentiate between metastatic cancer and non-cancer 99 percent of the time. In addition, the Lymph Node Assistant is highly effective at finding the positions of the cancers. Some of these positions would be too small for doctors themselves to identify. The research also showed that the algorithm method can reduce the usual time needed to examine the disease by about 50 percent.
But Google makes clear the AI-based system is not meant to replace the work of medical professionals. Instead, it is designed to reduce the number of false identifications and help doctors work faster and more effectively.
1. What is the main idea of Paragraph 1?| A．Google became a pioneer in training doctors. |
| B．Machine learning is able to stop future medical events. |
| C．Google developed artificial intelligence to help doctors. |
| D．Artificial intelligence cured eye diseases with equal accuracy to doctors. |
| A．One-fourth of the metastatic breast cancer patients die in the end. |
| B．Metastatic breast cancer is very difficult to identify. |
| C．It results in 90 percent of deaths of all cancers. |
| D．It can be identified after a second examination. |
| A．It can offer effective treatment. |
| B．It can tell the exact positions of cancers |
| C．It costs 99 percent less time than before. |
| D．It improves the accuracy of identifying cancers by 50%. |
| A．False identification of cancers will be avoided. |
| B．More effective prevention of cancers will be found. |
| C．The number of medical professionals will be reduced. |
| D．Doctors can have a faster understanding of patients’ condition. |
10 . Some of the greatest problems we face today are concerned with the gradual destruction of our environment. Brown clouds; wildlife
But does it do any good?
I recently learned something about flamingos (火烈鸟). These beautiful birds gather in
However, the next day they
The
Then one day something
A few can make a
If you believe in a cause (事业), don’t
| A．protection | B．extinction | C．migration | D．separation |
| A．questions | B．costs | C．examples | D．problems |
| A．drive | B．run | C．cycle | D．stand |
| A．tiny | B．different | C．huge | D．similar |
| A．comes | B．passes | C．varies | D．moves |
| A．all | B．any | C．none | D．most |
| A．gather | B．try | C．sing | D．appear |
| A．attract | B．require | C．escape | D．pay |
| A．plan | B．trend | C．activity | D．movement |
| A．since | B．though | C．unless | D．while |
| A．responsibility | B．notice | C．chance | D．measure |
| A．put off | B．cut off | C．carried out | D．worked out |
| A．approaches | B．works | C．changes | D．disappears |
| A．significant | B．reasonable | C．adequate | D．small |
| A．continues | B．delays | C．finishes | D．begins |
| A．familiar | B．strange | C．magnificent | D．unrealistic |
| A．point | B．decision | C．difference | D．mistake |
| A．useless | B．tireless | C．extra | D．special |
| A．give up | B．give in | C．give away | D．give out |
| A．identify | B．understand | C．predict | D．solve |
