Question

【题目】Anyone who has worn a cast (石膏) knows that rebuilding muscle strength once the cast is removed can be difficult. Now researchers at the Ohio Musculoskeletal and Neurological Institute (OMNI) at Ohio University have found that the mind is critical in maintaining muscle strength following a long period of not moving and that mental imagination may be key in reducing the associated muscle loss.

Strength is controlled by a number of factors---the most studied by far is skeletal muscle. However, the nervous system is also an important, though not fully understood, determining factor of strength and weakness.

Brian C. Clark and colleagues set out to test how the system functions in strength development. They designed an experiment to measure changes in wrist (腕) muscle strength in three groups of healthy adults. Twenty-nine subjects wore a hard cast that extended from just below the elbow (肘) past the fingers, effectively preventing the hand and wrist from moving, for four weeks. Fifteen subjects who did not wear casts served as the control group.

Of the 29 people wearing a hard cast, half were asked to regularly perform an exercise, imagining they were strongly contracting their wrist for five seconds and then resting for five seconds. This was repeated four times in a row followed by a one-minute break for a total of 13 rounds per session and five sessions per week. The other half performed no imagination exercises.

At the end of the four-week experiment, both groups who wore casts had lost strength in their unmoving limbs (肢体) when compared to the control group. But the group that performed imagination exercises lost 50% less strength than the non-imagination group. The nervous system’s ability to fully make the muscle recover also returned more quickly in the imagination group compared to the non-imagination group.

【1】What does the underlined word “critical” mean in the first paragraph?

A. Serious. B. Embarrassing.

C. Important. D. Normal.

【2】Which of the following statements is NOT true according to the passage?

A. Scientists have partly understood the nervous system.

B. Whoever has worn a cast for long may have difficulty in muscle recovery.

C. Scientists have already spent a lot of time in studying skeletal muscle.

D. The number of the subjects in the experiment was 29 in all.

【3】What can we learn from the experiment?

A. The control group lost 50% less strength than the non-imagination group.

B. The imagination group lost more strength than the non-imagination group.

C. The control group wore casts but didn’t perform the imagination exercise.

D. The speed of non-imagination group’s muscle recovery was slower.

【4】 Where can you most probably find the passage?

A. In a science magazine. B. In a storybook.

C. In a textbook . D. In a book review.

Answer 1

【答案】

【1】C

【2】D

【3】D

【4】A

【解析】

试题分析：本文介绍了俄亥俄州大学的肌肉骨骼和神经系统研究所的研究人员已经发现，在保持肌肉力量的长期不动时，精神上的想象可能是减少相关的肌肉损失的关键。

【1】C词义猜测题。根据这句话的后部分mental imagination may be key in reducing the associated muscle loss. 精神上的想象可能是减少相关的肌肉损失的关键。可推测，这个词应该是重要的意思。故选C。

【2】D推理判断题。根据第四段Of the 29 people wearing a hard cast, half were asked to regularly perform an exercise, 在29个人戴着硬石膏的人中，一半的人被要求定期进行锻炼..可知D错误。

【3】D细节理解题。由最后一段The nervous system’s ability to fully make the muscle recover also returned more quickly in the imagination group compared to the non-imagination group. 与非想象组相比，想象组的神经系统使肌肉充分恢复的能力也更迅速。故选D。

【4】A推理判断题。通读全文可知，这是一篇关于神经系统与肌肉组织关系的文章。应该在科学杂志上可以找到。故选A。