How Room Designs Affect Our Work and Feelings  

Architects have long had the feeling that the places we live in can affect our thoughts, feelings and behaviors. But now scientists are giving this feeling an empirical（经验的，实证的） basis. They are discovering how to design spaces that promote creativity, keep people focused and lead to relaxation.  

Researches show that aspects of the physical environment can influence creativity. In 2007, Joan Meyers-Levy at the University of Minnesota, reported that the height of a room's ceiling affects how people think. Her research indicates that higher ceilings encourage people to think more freely, which may lead them to make more abstract connections. Low ceilings, on the other hand, may inspire a more detailed outlook.  

In additions to ceiling height, the view afforded by a building may influence an occupant's ability to concentrate. Nancy Wells and her colleagues at Cornell University found in their study that kids who experienced the greatest increase in greenness as a result of a family move made the most gains on a standard test of attention.  

Using nature to improve focus of attention ought to pay off  academically, and it seems to, according to a study led by C. Kenneth Tanner, head of the School Design & Planning Laboratory at the University of Georgia. Tanner and his team found that students in classrooms with unblocked views of at least 50 feet outside the window had higher scores on tests of vocabulary, language arts and maths than did students whose classrooms primarily overlooked roads and parking lots.  

Recent study on room lighting design suggests than dim（暗淡的） light helps people to loosen up. If that is true generally, keeping the light low during dinner or at parties could increase relaxation. Researchers of Harvard Medical School also discovered that furniture with rounded edges could help visitors relax.  

So far scientists have focused mainly on public buildings. "We have a very limited number of studies, so we're almost looking at the problem through a straw（吸管）," architect David Allison says. "How do you take answers to very specific questions and make broad, generalized use of them? That's what we're all struggling with."  

1.What does Joan Meyers-Levy focus on in her research?  

A. Light.      B. Ceilings.     C. Windows.     D. Furniture.  

2.The passage tells us that ______.  

A. the shape of furniture may affect people's feelings  

B. lower ceilings may help improve students' creativity  

C. children in a dim classroom may improve their grades  

D. students in rooms with unblocked views may feel relaxed  

3.The underlined sentence in the last paragraph probably means that ______.  

A. the problem is not approached step by step  

B. the researches so far have faults in themselves  

C. the problem is too difficult for researchers to detect  

D. research in this area is not enough to make generalized patterns  

4.Which of the following shows the organization of the passage?  

 Wendy ,Carol, Jenny, Tom 和Mark 想观看演出或参加培训.阅读下列材料, 从所给的6个选项中,选出符合各自要求的最佳选项。其中一项是多余的。(5分)

1.Wendy, a student who is interested comedy and acting,will be free on Oct.12th .She wants to relax herself by enjoying some performances, but she has no more than $4.

2.Carol is expected to be free on October 15th. She plans to enjoy some

performances while having a cup of coffee.

3.Jenny, a student who majors in art, is interested in Italian art as well as Chinese art. She will be free after school at 4:30.

4.Tom will go to study in the USA for a master’s degree. He wants to have a full-time special training for several months to improve his oral English.

5.Mark , a worker of an export company, needs to improve his writing and oral English. He can only go to the training class after work every day.

A.ENGLISH  LANGUAGE  CENTER

Classes for beginners for 3 months.

Focus on grammar as well as writing and oral English.

3:00 p.m to 9:30 p.m

Small classes with a maximum of 8 students

Course fee: $300 (10% discount for the first to enroll)

B.HALIFAX  PLAYHOUSE

Ring’s Cross Street, Halifax.

Oct.10th--- Oct 17th on Golden Pond by Emest Thompson.

This is a magical comedy about real people. A well-acted play for everyone.

Don’t miss it.

Time: 7:30 p.m

Price: $3

Tel:36599988

C.LONDON COLLEGE OF ENGLISH

Classes for foreign students of all levels.

3 months, 6 months,9 months and 1 years course.

Focus on spoken language.

Open through all year from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Small class with a maximum of 12 students.

Course fee for English for one year: ;$1,200

Discount at shorter period of study.

Tel:22342381

D.EXHIBITIONS OF OIL PAINTINGS

Gallery of the Central Academy of Fine Art

A combination of Eastern and Western Art 8:00 a.m.

Price: $2 for adults, $1 for students

Tel: 33569875

E.WESTERN ART SHOW

China National Art Museum

European modern art, Chinese art and African ancient art

Open from 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m from Oct. 6th to 20th

Price : $3 for adults, $1.5 for middle school students.

Tel:25545569

F.GRAND THEATRE

Oxford Street, Leeds

Restaurant and Cafe.

Sep.1st—19th

Admission:Tues.--Thurs. $2-6; Fri.& Sat.$4-8

Sue Townsend’s musical play.

Time: Evenings 7:45. Oct 10th—17th, at 2:30 p.m.

No Monday performance.

All kinds of drinks offered

Tel :52011611

PERFORMANCES

Keep in the air:The Chaoyang Theater is one of Beijing Theaters to present acrobatic programs all year round.

Top acrobatic artists invited from all over the country perform for Chinese and foreign tourists.The program features trick cycling,leaping through hoops and Chinese magic tricks.Some of the artists have won prizes in international competitions.

Time:7:15p.m.Daily

Place:36,Dongsanhuan Belu.Chaoyang District

Tel:6507---2421   6507---1818

Use your head:Green head is a new drama given by a group of young Chinese actors.It’s a reworking of American writer Nathaniel Hawthorne’s famous novel The Scarlet Letter .It describes the heroine’s great courage in finding the true love against a backdrop of disapproval.

Time:7:15p.m. until March 5^th,except Mondays

Place:China Children’s Theater

Tel:6603---7255   6603---7265

Mix and match:Story of Puppets tells a fairy.Zixia,who looks for true love in the human world.After watching a puppet play Peony Pavdion ,she thinks it must be true love in reality,so she uses magic to turn the puppet characters into the humans,wanting to fall in love with the puppet hero.But things don’t go as she planned.

Li Liuyi,the director of the play has made several successful attempts to join different traditional operas together in one play.This time he combines Peking Opera,Kunqu Opera,Pingju Opera and an orchestral accompaniment,using the structure of modern drama.

Time:7:30 p.m until March 10^th,except Mondays

Place:Small Playhouse of Beijing People’s Art Theater

Peking Opera:The Peking Opera Troupe will give two performances at the Chang’an Grand Theater.

Each performance consists of two classical plays. One is Wenxi(a play focus on singing and dancing);the other is Wuxi(a play full of acrobatic dancing).

The first night will be The crossroad and Presenting a pearl of the Rainbow Bridge.And the second night will see the performance of The Godess of Heaven Scatters Flowers and Havoc in Heaven.

Time:7:30p.m. February 27^th ,28^th

Place:Chang’an Grand Theater

Tel:86531043

1.From the ads we can learn that______.

2.If a tourist wants to see a performance on March 15^th,he can call______to book a ticket.

3.Which of the following statements is true according to the ads?

How Room Designs Affect Our Work and Feelings

Architects have long had the feeling that the places we live in can affect our thoughts, feelings and behaviors. But now scientists are giving this feeling an empirical（经验的，实证的） basis. They are discovering how to design spaces that promote creativity, keep people focused and lead to relaxation.

 Researches show that aspects of the physical environment can influence creativity. In 2007, Joan Meyers-Levy at the University of Minnesota, reported that the height of a room's ceiling affects how people think. Her research indicates that higher ceilings encourage people to think more freely, which may lead them to make more abstract connections. Low ceilings, on the other hand, may inspire a more detailed outlook.

 In additions to ceiling height, the view afforded by a building may influence an occupant's ability to concentrate. Nancy Wells and her colleagues at Cornell University found in their study that kids who experienced the greatest increase in greenness as a result of a family move made the most gains on a standard test of attention.

 Using nature to improve focus of attention ought to pay off  academically, and it seems to, according to a study led by C. Kenneth Tanner, head of the School Design & Planning Laboratory at the University of Georgia. Tanner and his team found that students in classrooms with unblocked views of at least 50 feet outside the window had higher scores on tests of vocabulary, language arts and maths than did students whose classrooms primarily overlooked roads and parking lots.

 Recent study on room lighting design suggests than dim（暗淡的） light helps people to loosen up. If that is true generally, keeping the light low during dinner or at parties could increase relaxation. Researchers of Harvard Medical School also discovered that furniture with rounded edges could help visitors relax.

So far scientists have focused mainly on public buildings. "We have a very limited number of studies, so we're almost looking at the problem through a straw（吸管）," architect David Allison says. "How do you take answers to very specific questions and make broad, generalized use of them? That's what we're all struggling with."

What does Joan Meyers-Levy focus on in her research?

 A. Light.      B. Ceilings.     C. Windows.     D. Furniture.

The passage tells us that ______.

 A. the shape of furniture may affect people's feelings

 B. lower ceilings may help improve students' creativity

 C. children in a dim classroom may improve their grades

 D. students in rooms with unblocked views may feel relaxed

The underlined sentence in the last paragraph probably means that ______.

 A. the problem is not approached step by step

 B. the researches so far have faults in themselves

 C. the problem is too difficult for researchers to detect

 D. research in this area is not enough to make generalized patterns

Which of the following shows the organization of the passage?

 CP: Central Point    P: Point   SP: Sub-point（次要点）   C: Conclusion

第二节：信息匹配（共5小题；每小题2分，满分10分）
请阅读下面应用文和相关信息，按照要求进行匹配，并在答题卡上将对应题号的相应选项字母涂黑。
首先，请阅读下列广告信息：
A. ENGLISH LANGUAGE CENTER
Classes for beginners for 3 months.
Focus on grammar as well as writing and oral English.
3:00 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.
Small classes with maximum 8 students
Course fee: $300(10% discount for the first to enroll)
Tel: 22325445
B. HALIFAX PLAYHOUSE
Ring’s Cross Street, Halifax.
Oct. 10th –17th on Golden Pond by Emest Thompson.
This is a magical comedy about real people. A well-acted play for everyone.
Don’t miss it.
Performances:7:30 p.m.
Admission:$3.
Tel:3659 9988
C:LONDON COLLEGE OF ENGLISH
Classes for foreign students of all levels.
3 months, 6 months, 9 months and 1 year course.
Focus on spoken language.
Open through all year from 8:00 a. m. to 5:00 p.m.
Small class with maximum 12 students.
Course fee for English for one year: $1,200
Discount at shorter period of study.
Tel: 22342381
D:EXHIBITIONS OF OIL PAINTINGS
Gallery of the Central Academy of Fine Art
A combination of Eastern and Western Art
8:00 am to 5:00 p.m. from January 3th to 19th
Admission:$2 for adults, $1 for students
Tel:33569875
E: WESTERN ART SHOW
China National Art Museum
European modern art, Chinese art and African ancient art.
Open from 7:30 am to 4:00pm from January 6 th to 20 th
Admission: $3 for adults, $1.5 for middle school students.
Tel:25545569
F: GRAND THEATRE
Oxford Street, Leeds.
Restaurant and Café.
Sept. 1-19
Admission: Tues-Thurs. $2-6; Fri. & Sat. $4-8
Sue Townsend’s musical play.
Performances: Evenings 7:45. October 10-17, at 2:30 p.m. No Monday performance.
All kinds of drinks offered
Tel: 52011611
然后请阅读下列Wendy 等人的信息，并匹配各人所需要联系的电话号码：
56. Wendy, a student who is interested in comedy and performing, happens to be free on Oct. 12th and wants to relax herself by enjoying some performances, but she has no more than $4.
57 Carol happens to be free on October 15th and plans to enjoy some performances while having a cup of coffee.
58. Jenny,a student who is a major in art is interested in Italian art as well as Chinese ,will be  free after school at 4:30.
59.Tom will go to study in the USA for a master’s degree. He wants to have a full-time special training for several months to improve his oral English.
60.Mark,a worker of an export company,needs to improve his writing and oral English. He can only go to the training class after work every day.
56. Wendy            A. 22325445
57 .Carol                     B. 3659 9988
58. Jenny                        C. 22342381
59.Tom                    D. 33569875
60. Mark                     E. 25545569
F. 52011611