If you want to stay young, sit down and have a good think. This is the research finding of a team of Japanese doctors, who say that most of our brains are not getting enough exercise and, as a result, we are growing old unnecessarily soon.
Professor Taiju Matsuzawa wanted to find out why quite healthy in northern Japan appeared to be losing their ability to think and reason at a rather early age, and how the speed of getting old could be slowed down.
With a team of researchers at Tokyo National University, he set about measuring brain volumes of a thousand people of different ages with different jobs. Computer technology helped the researchers to get most exact measurements of the volume of the front and side parts of the brain, which have something to do with intellect and feelings, and decide the human character. As we all know, the back part of the brain, which controls task like eating and breathing, does not contract with age.
Contraction of front and side parts—as cells die off—was seen in some people in their thirties, but it was still not found in some sixty and seventy-year-olds.
Matsuzawa concluded from his tests that there is a simple way to prevent the contraction—using the head.
The findings show that contraction of the brain begins sooner in people in the country than in the towns. “Those with least possibility,” says Matsuzawa, “are lawyers, followed by university professors and doctors. White collar workers doing the same work day after day in government offices are, however, as possible to have contracting brains as the farm worker, bus driver and shop assistant.”
【小题1】The team of doctors wanted to find out _____.
| A．at what point people grow mentally old |
| B．how to make people live longer |
| C．the size of certain people’s brains |
| D．which people are the most clever |
| A．an examination of farmers in northern Japan |
| B．tests given on a thousand old people |
| C．examining the brain volumes of different people |
| D．using computer technology |
| A．our brains contract as we grow older |
| B．one part of the brain does not contract |
| C．sixty-year-olds have better brains than thirty-year-olds |
| D．some people’s brains have contracted earlier than other people’s |
| A．most of us take more exercise |
| B．it’s better to live in the town |
| C．the brain contracts if it is not used |
| D．the more one uses his brain, the sooner he becomes old |
【小题1】A
【小题2】C
【小题3】D
【小题4】C
解析试题分析：文章介绍了一项研究的发现：不经常用脑的人的大脑比经常用脑的人会更早的时候分散注意力。所以要想保持大脑的年轻要多动脑子。
【小题1】主旨题：从第二段的句子：Professor Taiju Matsuzawa wanted to find out why quite healthy in northern Japan appeared to be losing their ability to think and reason at a rather early age, and how the speed of getting old could be slowed down.可知这项调查是想弄清在什么时候人会在精神上变老。选A
【小题2】细节题：从第三段的句子：With a team of researchers at Tokyo National University, he set about measuring brain volumes of a thousand people of different ages with different jobs.可知这项研究是建立在对1000个人的脑量的检测的基础上，选C
【小题3】细节题：从第四段的句子：Contraction of front and side parts—as cells die off—was seen in some people in their thirties,可知有的人的大脑比别人在更早的时候会分散注意力，选D
【小题4】推理题：从倒数第二段的句子：Matsuzawa concluded from his tests that there is a simple way to prevent the contraction—using the head.可知人的大脑不经常使用会变老，选C
考点：考查科普类短文
冲刺100分单元优化练考卷系列答案科目：高中英语 来源： 题型：阅读理解
Online Communication
In an age when technology moves faster than most can keep up with, a small group of people still remain in the time of old-fashioned letter. Frankly speaking, I was once certain that traditional letters could never be replaced by other means of communication.
But a story about online communication changed my mind.
An old man, who suffered a lot from Parkinson’s disease, was not able to talk clearly and could hardly write his name. Living totally alone, he managed to keep in touch with nearly all the members of his family. How did he achieve this? He clicked out words on his computer keyboard.
I, therefore, managed to get an E-mail box as soon as the opportunity came. My life changed. E-mail, and all online communication, is something truly different. It has capabilities（能力） that few other products can match.
E-mail is convenient. It takes less time with its fast speed and 24-hour connection. The slow postal service is no match. If you wouldn’t want to have a face-to-face talk with your manager, you might talk with him through E-mail even if you are in the same office.
Naming all the good things about online communication is not easy. But wait. E-mail can be inconvenient. It can waste time and energy. Just think what may happen when you take a short vacation and return to find your e-mail box filled with 200 unread messages. You could easily spend half a day clearing junk ads.
Then, online communication will keep us staying at our computer while it connects us to distant strangers. Once we throw ourselves into the machine, we may forget the human touches we once held so dear. I’m sure there is and always will be a place for the old-fashioned letter, phone call, and face-to-face meeting… even in the world of modern communication.
As I listen to the sound of the modem(调制解调器), I was excited at stepping out to the outside world but, at the same time, I sensed a loss of control over something valuable in my personal life.
【小题1】What is the most probable meaning of the underlined word “junk” in paragraph6?
| A．old and useless | B．New and useful | C．Short but valuable | D．Long but clear |
| A．It should replace old-fashioned letters completely. |
| B．It is perfect and always does good to you. |
| C．It is extremely useful and convenient, but it may be inconvenient or even harmful. |
| D．It does more harm than good. |
| A．The sound of the modem. | B．His own illness. |
| C．The changing of his life. | D．A sick old man’s experience. |
| A．they are convenient and popular though they are slow |
| B．they help to keep the friendly relationship between people |
| C．most people cannot keep up with the development of technology |
| D．modern means of communication does too much harm |
| A．With the help of his computer. | B．By writing letters with his pen. |
| C．By making telephone calls. | D．By visiting them regularly. |
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科目：高中英语 来源： 题型：阅读理解
New research shows sheep are clever
People often make jokes about how dull sheep are, but new research shows they may be cleverer than we think. Researchers at the University of Cambridge discovered that Welsh mountain sheep have brainpower that equals rodents (啮齿动物). Tests found that the sheep can map the area they live in, and some may even be able to plan ahead.
Young fish prefer noisy neighbors
A new study has shown that young fish like to live on reefs with noisy neighbors! Researchers from the universities of Auckland and Bristol found that young fish looking for a home choose areas where other noisy fish live. The scientists produced all kinds of sounds which had been recorded in different natural environments. The young fish seemed to prefer the sounds of natural reefs, complete with noisy animals! The scientists compared the choice to a music fan wandering around at a music festival, choosing to set up a tent closest to the music they like best!
Butterflies are disappearing
A new study has shown that 17 species (物种) of butterfly found in Europe have dropped by 70% in the last 20 years. The information collected from 3,000 sites across 15 countries shows it may be caused by the loss (减少) of grasslands covered with flowers. You can encourage butterflies to come into your garden by planting flowers.
【小题1】What is the passage mainly about?
| A．Some new studies about animals. |
| B．People’s wrong ideas about animals. |
| C．Why the number of animals has dropped. |
| D．The importance of protecting animals. |
| A．are less clever than rodents |
| B．can find their home |
| C．can read maps |
| D．are good planners |
| A．live in a noisy environment |
| B．live in areas close to their parents |
| C．choose the reefs which are quiet |
| D．choose other kinds of fish as neighbors |
| A．The species of grass in grasslands. |
| B．The species of trees in grasslands. |
| C．The number of flowers in grasslands. |
| D．The number of animals in grasslands. |
| A．Geography. | B．Culture. | C．Travel. | D．Nature |
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科目：高中英语 来源： 题型：阅读理解
Everyone has heard of the San Andreas fault （断层）, which constantly threatens California and the West Coast with earthquakes. But how many people know about the equally serious New Madrid fault in Missouri?
Between December of 1811 and February of 1812, three major earthquakes occurred, all centered around the town of New Madrid, Missouri, on the Mississippi River. Property damage was severe. Buildings in the area were almost destroyed. Whole forests fell at once, and huge cracks opened in the ground, releasing some strong smell chemicals.
The Mississippi River itself completely changed character, developing sudden rapids and whirlpools (激流和漩涡). Several times it changed its course, and once, according to some observers, it actually appeared to run backwards. Few people were killed in the New Marid earthquakes, probably simply because few people lived in the area in 1811; but the severity of the earthquakes are shown by the fact that the shock waves rang bells in church towers in Charleston, South Carolina, on the coast. Buildings shook in New York City, and clocks were stopped in Washington, D.C.
Scientists now know that America's two major faults are essentially different. The San Andreas is a horizontal boundary between two major land masses that are slowly moving in opposite directions. California earthquakes result when the two masses make a sudden move.
The New Madrid fault, on the other hand, is a vertical fault; at some points, possibly hundreds of millions of years ago, rock was pushed up toward the surface, probably by volcanoes under the surface. Suddenly, the volcanoes cooled and the rock collapsed, leaving huge cracks. Even now, the rock continues to settle downwards, and sudden sinking motions cause earthquakes in the region. The fault itself, a large crack in this layer of rock, with dozens of other cracks that split off from it, extends from northeast Arkansas through Missouri and into southern Illinois.
Scientists who have studied the New Madrid fault say there have been numerous smaller quakes in the area since 1811; these smaller quakes indicate that larger ones are probably coming, but the scientists say they have no method of predicting when a large earthquake will occur.
【小题1】This passage is mainly about ___________.
| A．current scientific knowledge about faults |
| B．the San Andreas and the New Madrid faults |
| C．the causes of faults |
| D．the New Madrid fault in Missouri |
| A．a vertical fault |
| B．a horizontal fault |
| C．a more serious fault than the San Andreas fault |
| D．responsible for forming the Mississippi River |
| A．horizontal faults are more dangerous than vertical faults |
| B．Vertical faults are more dangerous than horizontal faults |
| C．The volcanoes that caused the New Madrid fault are still alive |
| D．A lot of people would die if the 1811 New Madrid earthquakes happened today |
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科目：高中英语 来源： 题型：阅读理解
Early one morning, more than a hundred years ago, an American inventor called Elias Howe finally fell asleep. He had been working all night on the design of a sewing machine but he had run into a very difficult problem: It seemed impossible to get the thread to run smoothly around the needle.
Though he was tired, Howe slept badly. He turned and turned. Then he had a dream. He dreamt that he had been caught by terrible savages whose king wanted to kill him and eat him unless he could build a perfect sewing machine. When he tried to do so, Howe ran into the same problem as before. The thread kept getting caught around the needle. The king flew into the cage and ordered his soldiers to kill Howe. They came up towards him with their spears raised. But suddenly the inventor noticed something. There was a hole in the tip of each spear. The inventor awoke from the dream, realizing that he had just found the answer to the problem. Instead of trying to get the thread to run around the needle, he should make it run through a small hole in the center of the needle. This was the simple idea that finally made Howe design and build the first really practiced sewing machine.
Elias Howe was not the only one in finding the answer to his problem in this way.
Thomas Edison, the inventor of the electric light, said his best ideas came into him in dreams. So did the great physicist Albert Einstein. Charlotte Bronte also drew in her dreams in writing Jane Eyre.
To know the value of dreams, you have to understand what happens when you are asleep. Even then, a part of your mind is still working. This unconscious(无意识的), but still active part understands your experiences and goes to work on the problems you have had during the day. It stores all sorts of information that you may have forgotten or never have really noticed. It is only when you fall asleep that this part of the brain can send messages to the part you use when you are awake. However, the unconscious part acts in a special way. It uses strange images which the conscious part may not understand at first. This is why dreams are sometimes called “secret messages to ourselves”.
【小题1】According to the passage, Elias Howe was________.
| A．the first person we know of who solved problems in his sleep |
| B．much more hard-working than other inventors |
| C．the first person to design a sewing machine that really worked |
| D．the only person at the time who knew the value of dreams |
| A．what kind of thread to use |
| B．how to design a needle which would not break |
| C．where to put the needle |
| D．how to prevent the thread from getting caught around the needle |
| A．he also tried to invent a sewing machine |
| B．he got some of his ideas from dreams |
| C．he was one of Howe’s best friends |
| D．he also had difficulty in falling asleep |
| A．strange images are used to communicate ideas |
| B．images which have no meaning are used |
| C．we can never understand the real meaning |
| D．only specially trained people can understand them |
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科目：高中英语 来源： 题型：阅读理解
It’s you and I who are to blame for the state of the earth. No question about it. It’s our life-style that is threatening life on Earth, so we must make the changes. The good news is that many of those changes are really quite simple, even enjoyable, but for every careful step we take as individuals, we must press government and industry to take a big step on our benefit. And we must start now. Tomorrow’s too late.
My aim this year is to persuade as many of my friends and colleagues as possible to choose the train, and leave their cars behind too. My gardens have been pesticide(杀虫剂)–free zones for years and I enjoy seeing more wildlife on my doorstep as a result; I’ve tried to reduce my contribution to water pollution too, by using environment-friendly, phosphate(磷)–free washing powder , and by no longer thinking of the toilet as a suitable waste-disposal(处理) point .
I ran after a young lady through town recently to give her back the piece of paper she had carelessly thrown away. She disappeared into a shop, and when I followed her inside and made my presentation, she was doubly embarrassed--she worked there, and the boss gave her a ticking–off too. I’ve started asking fellow drivers at gas stations why they aren’t using unleaded (无铅的) petrol . These are small things, but we have to start somewhere, and every little does help.
【小题1】We can learn from the first paragraph that____________.
| A．you and I are responsible for looking after the environment |
| B．the government and industry are responsible for looking after the environment |
| C．the government is responsible for looking after the environment |
| D．both A and B |
| A．taking the train instead of a car |
| B．avoiding the use of pesticides |
| C．throwing away the old cars |
| D．running after those who throw articles carelessly |
| A．to find out where she worked |
| B．to give her back the piece of paper she had lost |
| C．to ask her to pay him for picking up the piece of paper. |
| D．to tell her not to throw away pieces of paper carelessly |
| A．persuade his friends to take the train |
| B．try to advise us all to protect our environment |
| C．make clear who is responsible for the environment |
| D．inform us of the good news |
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科目：高中英语 来源： 题型：阅读理解
Everyone likes living in a clean and comfortable environment. If the envionment(环境) are bad, it will affect（影响）our body, and make us not feel well. Sometimes we may be terribly ill. At that time we don’t want to work, and we have to stay in bed and rest at home. So the envrionment is very important to us.
It’s germs that makes us ill. There are germs everywhere, They are very small and you can’t find them with your own eyes, but you can see them with a microscope（显微镜）They are very small and there may be hundreds of them on a very small thing, Germs can always be found in dirty water. When we look at dirty water under the microscope, we shall see them in it. Germs can also be found in air and dust（灰尘）. If you cut your finger, some of the dust from the floor may go into it, and you will have much pain in it. Sometimes the germs will go into all of your boby, and you will have pain everywhere.
To keep us healthy, we should try to our best to make our environment become cleaner and tidier. This needs us to act together.
【小题1】The writer tell us that________.
| A．we like working when we are ill |
| B．germs can’t live in the water. |
| C．we can’t feel ill if the environment is bad. |
| D．we feel well when the environment is good. |
| A．very small things that you can’t see with your eyes. |
| B．the things that don’t effect people. |
| C．the things that you can find with your eyes. |
| D．the things that are very big. |
| A．on the small thing | B．in air and dust |
| C．only in dirty water | D．everywhere |
| A．I will feel nothing. | B．I won’t mind. |
| C．I will feel tense. | D．I will feel painful. |
| A．environment doesn’t affect our life |
| B．we don’t need to improve our environment |
| C．germs may make us ill |
| D．if the environment is better, germs will be more. |
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科目：高中英语 来源： 题型：阅读理解
Passage 1
The information Highway is the road that links computer users to a large number of on-line services; the Web, e-mail, and software, to mention just a few. Not long ago, the information Highway was a new road, with not many users. Now, everyone seems to want to take a drive, with over 30 million families connected worldwide. Not surprisingly, this well-traveled highway is starting to look like a well-traveled highway. Traffic jams can cause many serious problems, forcing the system to close down for repair. Naturally, accidents will happen on such a crowed road, and usually victims are some files, gone forever. Then, of course, there’s Mr. Cool, with his new broad-band connection, who speeds down the highway faster than most of us can go. But don’t trick yourself; he pays for that speeding.
Passage 2
Want to know more about global warming and how you can help prevent it? Doctor Herman Friedman, who is considered a leading expert on the subject, will speak at Grayson Hall next Friday. Friedman studied environmental science at three well-known universities around the world before becoming a professor in the subject. He has also traveled around the world observing environmental concerns. The gradual bleaching (变白) of the Grate Barrier Reef, which came into the public eye in 2002, in his latest interest. Signed copies of his colorful book, which was published just last month, will be on sale after his talk.
【小题1】The Information Highway________.
| A．appeals to a large number of users |
| B．is crowded with car drivers |
| C．offers just a few on-line services] |
| D．is free from traffic accidents |
| A．By storing fewer files. |
| B．By repair the system. |
| C．By using a broad-band connection. |
| D．By buying a better computer. |
| A．There will be a book show at Grayson Hall |
| B．Friedman is now studying the Great Barrier Reef. |
| C．Friedman is a leading expert on computer science. |
| D．There will be a talk on global warming this week. |
| A．An ad for a new book. |
| B．A poster about a lecture. |
| C．A note to a doctor in a university. |
| D．An introduction to a professor. |
| A．Doctor Herman Friedman is a famous expert on environmental science. |
| B．A new book has been published recently by Doctor Herman Friedman. |
| C．The colorful new book, signed by him, will be sold before the talk. |
| D．Doctor Herman Friedman has studied the changes of the Grate Barrier Reef. |
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科目：高中英语 来源： 题型：阅读理解
All over the world people enjoy sports, Sports help to keep people healthy and happy, and to live longer.
Many people like to watch others play games. They buy tickets or turn on their TVs to watch the games. Often they get very excited when “their” player or team wins.
Some sports are so interesting that people everywhere go in for(参加) them. Football, for example, has spread(展开)around the world. Swimming is popular in all countries near the sea or in those with many rivers. What fun it is to jump into a pool or lake, whether in China, Egypt or Italy! And think of people in cold countries. Think how many love to skate or ski (滑雪) in Japan, Norway or Canada.
Some sports or games go back thousands of years, like running or jumping. Chinese wushu, for example, has a very long history. But basketball and volleyball are rather new. Neither one is a hundred years old yet. People are inventing new sports or games all the time. Water-skiing is one of the newest in the family of sports.
People from different countries may not be able to understand each other, but after a game together they often become good friends. Sports help to train a person’s character. One learns to fight hard but fight fair, to win without pride and to lose with grace(胜不骄，败不馁).
【小题1】Why do people all over the world enjoy sports?
| A．Because they are healthy. |
| B．Because they are happy. |
| C．Because they want to live longer. |
| D．All the above. |
| A．their favourite team wins | B．they win the game |
| C．they get the good news | D．they can’t help themselves |
| A．they train their character in the game |
| B．they understand each other |
| C．they are friendly to each other |
| D．they help each other |
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