People often view the “last” moments of an event positively simply because they signal the end of an experience, say experts.
University of Michigan researchers found that even if an experience is painful or negative, but ends on a good note, people will consider it to be positive.
“Endings are powerful,” said Ed O’Brien, a graduate student in the Department of Psychology at the University of Michigan.
O’Brien and colleague Phoebe Ellsworth, the Frank Murphy Distinguished Professor of Law and Psychology, conducted a chocolate tasting experiment with 52 college students to test the theory.
Volunteers could taste five different Hershey’s Kisses chocolates—milk, dark, cream, caramel and almond – but did not know in advance how many pieces they would eat or the type. Participants rated how much they enjoyed the chocolate and described each flavor so that the researchers could record the order in which the randomly (随机的) selected treats were eaten.
Volunteers were assigned to the “next” or the “last ” condition by chance.
In the “next” condition, the experimenter said “Here is your next chocolate” before offering each chocolate, including the fifth.
For the “last” condition, the experimenter said “Here is your last chocolate” before offering  the fifth chocolate.
These participants rated the fifth chocolate more enjoyable than volunteers in the “next” condition.
As predicted, participants who knew they were eating the final chocolate of a taste test enjoyed it more.
In fact, when asked to pick their favorite chocolate, the majority of “last” participants chose the fifth – even though the flavor of the fifth was randomly chosen.
They also rated the overall experience as more enjoyable than volunteers who thought they were just eating one more chocolate in a series.
O’Brien says these findings may have far-reaching implications. For example, the last book or film in a series or the last speaker in a symposium (研讨会) may receive unwarranted praise.
The last job applicant, meanwhile, may look more qualified.
【小题1】Which of the following is TRUE about the experiment?

People often view the “last” moments of an event positively simply because they signal the end of an experience, say experts.

University of Michigan researchers found that even if an experience is painful or negative, but ends on a good note, people will consider it to be positive.

“Endings are powerful,” said Ed O’Brien, a graduate student in the Department of Psychology at the University of Michigan.

O’Brien and colleague Phoebe Ellsworth, the Frank Murphy Distinguished Professor of Law and Psychology, conducted a chocolate tasting experiment with 52 college students to test the theory.

Volunteers could taste five different Hershey’s Kisses chocolates—milk, dark, cream, caramel and almond – but did not know in advance how many pieces they would eat or the type. Participants rated how much they enjoyed the chocolate and described each flavor so that the researchers could record the order in which the randomly (随机的) selected treats were eaten.

Volunteers were assigned to the “next” or the “last ” condition by chance.

In the “next” condition, the experimenter said “Here is your next chocolate” before offering each chocolate, including the fifth.

For the “last” condition, the experimenter said “Here is your last chocolate” before offering  the fifth chocolate.

These participants rated the fifth chocolate more enjoyable than volunteers in the “next” condition.

As predicted, participants who knew they were eating the final chocolate of a taste test enjoyed it more.

In fact, when asked to pick their favorite chocolate, the majority of “last” participants chose the fifth – even though the flavor of the fifth was randomly chosen.

They also rated the overall experience as more enjoyable than volunteers who thought they were just eating one more chocolate in a series.

O’Brien says these findings may have far-reaching implications. For example, the last book or film in a series or the last speaker in a symposium (研讨会) may receive unwarranted praise.

The last job applicant, meanwhile, may look more qualified.

1.Which of the following is TRUE about the experiment?

A．The majority of “last” participants chose the almond flavor as their favorite.

B．Some participants enjoyed the experiment more because the last flavor tasted better.

C．The result would be different if researchers had used another brand of chocolate.

D．Some participants didn’t know it was their last chocolate when offered the fifth one.

2.What does the underlined word “unwarranted” in the second-to-last paragraph mean?

A．Fake.             B．Unwanted.         C．Unreasonable.      D．Insincere.

3.Which of the following is the best title for the article?

A．“Last” is the best.

B．Why “last” matters most.

C．It is the last step that is the hardest.

D．He who laughs last laughs best.

People often view the “last” moments of an event positively simply because they signal the end of an experience, say experts.
University of Michigan researchers found that even if an experience is painful or negative, but ends on a good note, people will consider it to be positive.
“Endings are powerful,” said Ed O’Brien, a graduate student in the Department of Psychology at the University of Michigan.
O’Brien and colleague Phoebe Ellsworth, the Frank Murphy Distinguished Professor of Law and Psychology, conducted a chocolate tasting experiment with 52 college students to test the theory.
Volunteers could taste five different Hershey’s Kisses chocolates—milk, dark, cream, caramel and almond – but did not know in advance how many pieces they would eat or the type. Participants rated how much they enjoyed the chocolate and described each flavor so that the researchers could record the order in which the randomly (随机的) selected treats were eaten.
Volunteers were assigned to the “next” or the “last ” condition by chance.
In the “next” condition, the experimenter said “Here is your next chocolate” before offering each chocolate, including the fifth.
For the “last” condition, the experimenter said “Here is your last chocolate” before offering  the fifth chocolate.
These participants rated the fifth chocolate more enjoyable than volunteers in the “next” condition.
As predicted, participants who knew they were eating the final chocolate of a taste test enjoyed it more.
In fact, when asked to pick their favorite chocolate, the majority of “last” participants chose the fifth – even though the flavor of the fifth was randomly chosen.
They also rated the overall experience as more enjoyable than volunteers who thought they were just eating one more chocolate in a series.
O’Brien says these findings may have far-reaching implications. For example, the last book or film in a series or the last speaker in a symposium (研讨会) may receive unwarranted praise.
The last job applicant, meanwhile, may look more qualified

1. 1.

   Which of the following is TRUE about the experiment?

   1. A.
      The majority of “last” participants chose the almond flavor as their favorite
   2. B.
      Some participants enjoyed the experiment more because the last flavor tasted better
   3. C.
      The result would be different if researchers had used another brand of chocolate
   4. D.
      Some participants didn’t know it was their last chocolate when offered the fifth one
2. 2.

   What does the underlined word “unwarranted” in the second-to-last paragraph mean?

   1. A.
      Fake
   2. B.
      Unwanted
   3. C.
      Unreasonable
   4. D.
      Insincere
3. 3.

   Which of the following is the best title for the article?

   1. A.
      “Last” is the best
   2. B.
      Why “last” matters most
   3. C.
      It is the last step that is the hardest
   4. D.
      He who laughs last laughs best

1.The price of vegetables v______________ from season to season.

2. Chunxi Street is the c _______________ center of Chengdu.

3. The c ______________ between different ethnic groups caused a series of wars.

4.It suddenly o ______________ to me that I might have been taken in by him.

5. Many countries highly v ______________ China’s role in keeping world peace.

6. Zhang Wuben exaggerated the quantity of ______________ (营养物质) contained in

   beans and garlic, causing their price to rise rapidly.

7.. Having lost a leg in the car accident, the girl remained ______________ (乐观的)  

   and tried to cheer up other patients in her room.

8. The CEO of the company has announced his ______________ (打算，意图) to retire.

9. Zhen He was the first Chinese to make a ______________ (航海，航行) around the 

   world.

10. His ______________ (鼓舞人心的) speech gave encouragement to all the audience

present.

Ever since Jerusha started her college, she began to write letters. Through a series of letters, from freshman to senior in college, she shared her life and study with an unknown gentleman, who never wrote back. Here is the very first letter.

1.Which of the following is NOT the reason for Jerusha to write the letter to Mr.Kind?

   A. To get her familiar to him.                                 B. To present her thankfulness to him.

   C. To share her brand-new college life with him.

   D. To apologize to him for not writing letters too often.

2.If Mrs. Lippett learned that the writer calls the man she writes to Daddy-long-legs, she would probably         .

A. burst into laughter    B. think it acceptable  

C. criticize the writer  D. inform the man

3.By "when I think about you, my imagination has very little to work upon.", the writer intends to tell us that        .

    A. the man she writes to is dull and boring

    B. she is not familiar with the one she writes to

    C. it is not interesting at all to write to a stranger

    D. she lacks imagination when it comes to writing a letter

4.Jerusha was probably          while she worked on the letter.

   A. curious             B. light-hearted       C. serious            D. skeptical