Question

【题目】All in the memory…

Many people complain that their memory is bad, especially as they get older. Phone numbers, names, facts we studied only a few days ago – life would be so much easier if we could remember them all effortlessly. So how can we improve our memory?

Many people think that repeating things is the best way to remember them. While this undoubtedly helps short-term memory (remembering a telephone number for a few seconds, for example), psychologists (心理学家) doubt whether it ca help you to remember things for very long. The British psychologist Ec Stanford seemed to prove this point when he tested himself on five prayers (祈祷文) that he had read aloud every morning for over 25 years. He found that he could remember no more than three words of some of them! More helpful, especially for remembering numbers, is grouping the information. The following numbers would be impossible for most of us to remember: 1492178919931848. But look at them in chunks, and it becomes much easier: 1492 1789 1993 1848.

So what about “memory training”? We’ve all heard about people who can memorize packs of cards by heart—how is this done and can anyone learn how to do it? According to experts, there are many ways of training your memory. Many of them involve forming a mental picture of the things to be memorized. One method, which may be useful in learning foreign languages, is to create a picture in your mind connected to a word you want to remember.

Another method is to invent a story that includes all the things you want to remember. In experiments, people were asked to remember up to 120 words using this skill; when tested afterwards, on average, they were able to recall 90% of them!

However, not all of us are interested in learning long lists of names and numbers just for fun.For those studying large number of information, psychologists suggest that the best way to form meaningful connections is to ask yourself lots of questions as you go along. So, for example, if you were reading about a particular disease (疾病), you would ask yourself questions like: “Do people get it from water?”, “What parts of the body does it influence?” and so on. This is said to be far more effective than time spent “passively” reading and re-reading notes.

【1】Which of the following is true about repeating things according to the passage?

A. It helps short-term memory for sure. B. It makes remembering things interesting.

C. It helps to remember things for long. D. It makes remembering prayers effortlessly.

【2】The word “chunks” in Paragraph 2 probably means “______”.

A. details B. turns C. groups D. lines

【3】What can we infer from the passage?

A. Creating a picture is useful in learning math.

B. Inventing a prayer trains our memory quickly.

C. Remembering long numbers is easy for people.

D. Asking yourself questions activates the memory.

【4】What’s the writer’s main purpose in writing this passage?

A. To complain that his memory is bad.

B. To recognize some memory problems.

C. To explain some memory experiments.

D. To share some ways of improving memory.

Answer 1

【答案】

【1】A

【2】C

【3】D

【4】D

【解析】很多人都抱怨他们的记忆力不好，尤其是上了年纪以后。的确有一个好的记忆力可以使我们的生活更方便，那么如何提高我们的记忆力呢？这篇短文中作者给我们介绍了一些方法。

【1】细节理解题。根据短文第二段中Many people think that repeating things is the best way to remember them. While this undoubtedly helps short-term memory (remembering a telephone number for a few seconds, for example)可知，很多人都是用不断的重复事物来记忆的，心理学家认为这对短时记忆是很有帮助的。由此可知应选A。

【2】词义猜测题。根据划线单词的上文More helpful, especially for remembering numbers, is grouping the information.可知，这里作者说到对于记忆数字，更有帮助是给信息分组。下面就给我们举了一个例子，But look at them in chunks, and it becomes much easier: 1492 1789 1993 1848.这句话是把这一串数字进行了分组。因此chunks这个单词应与group同义，故选C。

【3】推理判断题。根据短文最后一段For those studying large number of information, psychologists suggest that the best way to form meaningful connections is to ask yourself lots of questions as you go along.，这里作者介绍的是另外一种提高记忆力的方法，就是问自己很多问题，由此可知D是正确的。根据One method, which may be useful in learning foreign languages, is to create a picture in your mind connected to a word you want to remember可知A不对；根据The British psychologist Ec Stanford seemed to prove this point when he tested himself on five prayers (祈祷文) that he had read aloud every morning for over 25 years. He found that he could remember no more than three words of some of them!可知B不对；根据The following numbers would be impossible for most of us to remember: 1492178919931848.可知C不对。

【4】主旨大意题。根据短文第一段life would be so much easier if we could remember them all effortlessly. So how can we improve our memory?可知，这篇短文中作者给我们介绍的是如何提高我们的记忆力。从第二段开始，作者介绍了几个提高记忆力的方法。因此应选D。