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  Whether it is “women and children first” or “every man for himself” in a shipwreck(船只失事)may depend on how long it takes the ship to sink, researchers said recently.

  When the Lusitania was torpedoed(用鱼雷攻击)by a German ship in 1915, it sank in 18 minutes and the majority of the survivors were young men and women who responded immediately to their powerful survival instincts(本能).

  But when the Titanic struck an iceberg in 1912, it took “three hours to go down, allowing time for more civilize(文明的)behavior to take control-and the majority of the survivors were women, children and people with young children.

  Economist Benno Torgler of the Queensland University of Technology in Australia and his colleagues studied the two sinkings in order to explore the economic theory that people generally behave in a “rational”(理性的)and selfish manner.The two tragedies provided a “natural experiment” for testing the idea, because the passengers on the two ships were quite similar in terms of gender(性别)and wealth.

  The major difference was how long it took the ships to sink.They suggested that when people have little time to react, instincts may rule.When more time is available, social influences play a bigger role.But psychologists(心理学家)noted that many factors other than following social norms could come into play in a disaster, including an evolutionary urge to save the species, attachments(依恋)that are formed between individuals during the event and the leadership of authority figures.

  The extent(程度)of altruism(利他主义)and how it occurs “is a very controversial issue,” said Anthony R.Mawson, a professor of preventive medicine at the University of Mississippi Medical Center.He thinks the dominant(主宰的)response was attachment behavior.

  Psychologist Daniel Kruger of the University of Michigan, US thinks that the answer lies less in social norms and more in our evolutionary heritage.Human beings have a deep instinct to preserve our kind, he said, and that means “people are more likely to save those who have higher reproductive value, namely the young and women in child-bearing years”.

  Kruger also stressed the importance of leadership during a disaster, noting that the Titanic’s captain appeared to have greater control than the Lusitania’s.

(1)

According to Benno Torgler, what led to the different results between the two shipwrecks?

[  ]

A.

The survival instinct.

B.

The civilized behavior.

C.

The leadership of the captain.

D.

The length of time.

(2)

Which of the follwing explanations for the two sinkings will be accepted by psychologists?

[  ]

A.

Human beings are born to be selfish.

B.

The well-off will be likely to survive.

C.

Social status will play a decisive role in survival.

D.

Human survival is more significant than that of the individuals.

(3)

The following factors have something to do with disasters behaviors EXCEPT ________.

[  ]

A.

leadership

B.

social division of labor

C.

a feeling of affection

D.

social regulations

(4)

According to Daniel Kruger, the young and women in child-bearing years take the priority to survive because ________.

[  ]

A.

they make a contribution to human continuity

B.

they deserve everybody’s sympathy

C.

they have stronger survival instincts

D.

they are the weak who need protecting

(5)

What is the main idea of the passage?

[  ]

A.

The passage is mainly about two sinkings that had different result about survivals.

B.

The passage shows us the true causes that resulted in the two shipwrecks.

C.

The passage gives us a definite explanation about the different consequence of survivals of the two shipwrecks.

D.

The passage gives us various possible analyses about the disaster behaviors.

答案:1.D;2.D;3.B;4.A;5.D;
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科目:高中英语 来源:设计必修一英语北师版 北师版 题型:050

阅读理解

How Long Can People Live?

  She took up skating at age 85, made her first movie appearance at age 114, and held a concert in the neighborhood on her 121st birthday.

  Whe n it comes to long life, Jeanne Calment is the world’s recordholder.She lived to the ripe old age of 122.So is 122 the upper limit to the human life span(寿命)?If scientists come up with some sort of pill or diet that would slow aging, could we possibly make it to 150-or beyond?

  Researchers don’t entirely agree on the answers.“Calment lived to 122, so it wouldn’t surprise me if someone alive today reaches 130 or 135,”says Jerry Shay at the University of Texas.

  Steve Austad at the University of Texas agrees.“People can live much longer than we think,”he says.“Experts used to say that humans couldn’t live past 110.When Calment blew past that age, they raised the number to 120.So why can’t we go higher?”

  The trouble with guessing how old people can live to be is that it’s all just guessing.“Anyone can make up a number,”says Rich Miller at the University of Michigan.“Usually the scientist who picks the highest number gets his name in Time magazine.”

  Won’t new anti-aging techniques keep us alive for centuries?Any cure, says Miller, for aging would probably keep most of us kicking until about 120.Researchers are working on treatments that lengthen the life span of mice by 50 percent at most.So, if the average human life span is about 80 years, says Miller,“adding another 50 percent would get you to 120.”

  So what can we conclude from this little disagreement among the researchers?That life span is flexible(有弹性的),but there is a limit, says George Martin of the University of Washington.“We can get flies to live 50 percent longer,”he says.“But a fly’s never going to live 150 years.”

  “Of course, if you became a new species(物种),one that ages at a slower speed, that would be a different story,”he adds.

  Does Martin really believe that humans could evolve(进化)their way to longer life?“It’s pretty cool to think about it,”he says with a smile.

(1)

What does the story of Jeanne Calment prove to us?

[  ]

A.

People can live to 122.

B.

Old people are creative.

C.

Women are sporty at 85.

D.

Women live longer than men.

(2)

According to Steve Austad at the University of Texas, ________.

[  ]

A.

the average human life span could be 110

B.

scientists cannot find ways to slow aging

C.

few people can expect to live to over 150

D.

researchers are not sure how long people can live

(3)

Who would agree that a scientist will become famous if he makes the wildest guess at longevity?

[  ]

A.

Jerry Shay.

B.

Steve Austad

C.

Rich Miller

D.

George Martin

(4)

What can we infer from the last three paragraphs?

[  ]

A.

Most of us could be good at sports even at 120.

B.

The average human life span cannot be doubled.

C.

Scientists believe mice are aging at a slower speed than before.

D.

New techniques could be used to change flies into a new species.

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