Question

19．Oscar the cat seems to have an unnatural ability for predicting when nursing home patients are going to die，by curling up （蜷伏） next to them during their final hours．His accuracy，observed in 25 cases，has led the staff to call family members once he has chosen someone．It usually means the patient has less than four hours to live．"Many family members take some comfort from it．They appreciate the companionship that the cat provides for their dying loved one，"said Dosa，a doctor and assistant professor of medicine at Brown University．
The 2-year-old cat was adopted as a kitten and grew up in a third-floor dementia （痴呆） unit at the Steere House Nursing and Rehabilitation Center，where the facility treats people with Alzheimer's，Parkinson's disease and other illnesses．After about six months，the staff noticed Oscar would make his own rounds，just like the doctors and nurses．He'd smell and observe patients，then sit beside people who would end up dying in a few hours．Dosa said Oscar seems to take his work seriously．"This is not a cat that's friendly to people，"he said．
"Oscar is better at predicting death than the people who work here，"said Dr．Joan Teno of Brown University，who treats patients at the nursing home and is an expert on care for the terminally ill．She was convinced of Oscar's talent when he made his 13th correct call．While observing one patient，Teno said she noticed the woman wasn't eating，was breathing with difficulty and that her legs had a bluish color，signs that often mean death is near．Oscar wouldn't stay inside the room，though，so Teno thought bis streak was broken． Instead，it turned out the doctor's prediction was roughly 10 hours too early．Sure enough，during the patient's final two hours，nurses told Teno that Oscar joined the woman at her bedside．
Doctors say most of the people who get a visit from the sweet-faced，gray-and-white cat are so ill that they probably don't know he's there，so patients aren't aware he's a predictor of death．Most families are grateful for the advance warning，although one wanted Oscar out of the room while a family member died．When Oscar is put outside，he paces and meows his displeasure．
No one's certain if Oscar's behavior is scientifically significant or points to a cause．Teno wonders if the cat senses mysterious scents or reads something into the behavior of the nurses who raised him．Nursing home staff aren't concerned with explaining Oscar，so long as he gives families a better chance at saying goodbye to the dying．The staff recently gave Oscar a wall sign publicly praising his"sympathetic care．"

41．What makes Oscar the cat so special？D
A．He observes the cases of dying patients． B．He curls up next to the patients．
C．He calls family members to the hospital． D．He senses when patients are to die．
42．The passage tells us OscarA．
A．would go round and observe patients         
B．may sometimes fail to predict death
C．is friendly and liked by every nurse         
D．was born and grew up in the hospital
43．The underlined words "his streak was broken" probably meanB．
A．his bones were severely injured             B．his magic power stopped working
C．his devotion to work got changed            D．his friendship with patients ended
44．From the passage，we learn thatC．
A．Oscar's behavior is scientifically significant      
B．Oscar can read something of the nurses'behavior
C．Oscar might like to stay with the dying patients   
D．Oscar is sympathetic to the dying patients
45．The best title for this passage is"C"．
A．Cats Can Be Used for Looking After Patients      
B．Oscar，the Sweet-Faced，Gray-and-White Cat
C．As Death Comes Calling，So Does Oscar the Cat    
D．Oscar the Cat，the Best Helper of Our Hospital．

Answer 1

分析 文章讲述了一只有预测病人死亡能力的猫，它喜欢呆在临死的病人身边．当奥斯卡还是一只小猫时被医护人员收养，从那时起它就与痴呆病人同住在疗养院的三楼．

解答 41．D 细节理解题，根据第一段的Oscar the cat seems to have an unnatural ability forpredicting when nursing home patients are going to die，bycurling up （蜷伏） next to them during their final hours可知，奥斯卡猫似乎有一种非自然的预测能力，当疗养院的病人将要死亡时，在他们最后的时间里它就蜷伏在他们旁边．所以这只猫的特殊之处是当病人要死时它能感觉得到，故选D．
42．A 细节理解题，根据第二段的the staff noticed Oscar would make his own rounds，justlike the doctors and nurses．He"d smell and observe patients，thensit beside people who would end up dying in a few hours可知，工作人员注意到奥斯卡会像医生和护士一样查房，他会嗅到和观察病人，然后坐在几个小时后会死去的人身边．所以奥斯卡猫会查房和观察病人，故选A．
43．B 推理判断题，因为病人死前奥斯卡都会在身边陪伴，特诺注意到病人快要死了而奥斯卡不呆在房间里，所以特诺认为奥斯卡没有了预测病人死亡的能力，故选B．
44．C 推理判断题，根据这个猫的特殊能力可知，病人死前奥斯卡都会在身边陪伴，所以它喜欢和快要死去的病人呆在一起．故选C．45．C 主旨大意题，文章讲述的是一只有预测病人死亡能力的猫，它喜欢呆在临死的病人身边，这让它非常独特．故选C．

点评 本文是科技类阅读，考查学生对细节的理解把握和推理判断能力，做题时一定要找到文章中的原句，和题干进行比较，再做出正确选择．在做推理判断题时不要以个人的主观想象代替文章的事实，要根据文章事实进行合乎逻辑的推理判断．