题目内容
While some scientists overlook the existence of a sixth sense for danger, a new research from Washington University in St. Louis has identified a brain area that clearly acts as an early warning system and helps us adjust our behavior to avoid dangerous situations.
"Our brains are better at picking up not obvious warning signs than we previously thought," said Joshua Brown, PhD, a research associate in psychology in the Feb. 18 issue of the journal Science.
The findings offer exact scientific evidence for a new way to form a concept of the complex control processes taking place in and around the ACC, a brain area located near the top of the frontal lobes(耳垂) and along the walls that divide the left and right hemispheres(大脑半球).
"In the past, we found activity in the ACC when people had to make a difficult decision, or after they make a mistake," Brown said. "But now we find that this brain area can actually learn to recognize when you might make a mistake, even before a difficult decision has to be made. So the ACC appears to act as an early warning system—— it learns to warn us in advance when our behavior might lead to a negative outcome, so that we can be more careful and avoid making a mistake."
By providing a clearer picture of the cognitive mechanisms(认知结构) by which we self monitor and control our behavior, the study is an important step in efforts to develop more effective treatments for mental illnesses. It also provides a new way of understanding inappropriate behaviors that often accompany mental illnesses.
"Our results suggest how injury of the ACC mechanisms can lead to breakdowns in the early warning system, so that the brain fails to stop or control inappropriate behavior ahead of time," said Brown. "On the other hand, in those persons with mental disorder, the ACC might warn of an upcoming problem even when no problem is in the existence."
Known to be an important part of the brain's control system, the ACC is believed to help adjust between cold, hard, fact-based reasoning and emotional responses, such as love, fear or expectation.
68. According to the passage, the ACC____________.
A. refers to the sixth sense for danger B. deals with obvious warning situations
C. connects the left and right hemispheres D. sends warning messages in advance
69. The new research is beneficial because it ________ .
A. provides a new way of avoiding mistakes
B. adjusts emotional responses in time of danger
C. helps find better treatments for mental illnesses
D. assists people in predicting and avoiding danger
70. The new research helps us understand _________.
A. why we are likely to make mistakes when the ACC is badly injured
B. why people with mental illnesses usually have so many strange behaviors
C. how the ACC works when something dangerous happens
D. how our brain warns us of failure in advance
DCA
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We are all interested in equality, but while some people try to protect the school and examination system in the name of equality, others, still in the name of equality, want only to destroy it.
Any society which is interested in equality of opportunity and standards of achievement must regularly test its pupils. The standards may be changed — no examination is perfect — but to have no tests or examination would mean the end of equality and of standards. There are groups of people who oppose this view and who do not believe either in examinations or in any controls in schools or on teachers. This would mean that everything would depend on luck since every pupil would depend on the efficiency the values and the purpose of each teacher.
Without examinations, employers will look for employees from the highly respected schools and from families known to them — a form of favouritism will replace equality at the moment. The bright child from an ill-respected school can show certificates to prove he or she is suitable for a job, while the lack of certificate indicates the unsuitability of a dull child attending a well-respected school. This defense of excellence and opportunity would disappear if examinations were taken away, and the bright child from a poor family would be a prisoner of his or her school’s reputation, unable to compete for employment with the child from the favoured school.
The opponents of the examination system suggest that examinations are an evil force because they show differences between pupils. According to these people, there must be no special, different, academic class. They have even suggested that there should be no form of difference in sport or any other area: all jobs or posts should be filled by unsystematic selection. The selection would be made by people who themselves are probably selected by some computer.
【小题1】 The word “favouritism” in paragraph 3 is used to describe the phenomenon that .
| A．bright children also need certificates to get satisfying jobs. |
| B．poor children with certificates are favoured in job markets. |
| C．children from well-respected schools tend to have good jobs. |
| D．children attending ordinary schools achieve great success. |
| A．Schools for bright children would lose their reputation. |
| B．There would be more opportunities and excellence. |
| C．Children from poor families would be able to change their schools. |
| D．Children’s job opportunity would be affected by their school reputation. |
| A．jobs should not be assigned by systematic selection |
| B．computers should be selected to take over many jobs. |
| C．special classes are necessary to keep the school standards |
| D．schools with academic subjects should be done away with |
| A．schools and certificates | B．examination and equality |
| C．opportunity and employment | D．standards and reputation |
In a surprising discovery about where higher life can survive, scientists have found a shrimp -like creature and a jellyfish swimming beneath an Antarctic ice sheet.
About 180 meters below the ice where no light can get through, scientists had figured nothing much more than a few microbes (微生物) could exist.
That’s why a NASA team was surprised when they lowered a video camera to get the first long look at the underbelly of an ice sheet in Antarctica. A curious shrimp-like creature came swimming by and then parked itself on the camera’s cable. Scientists also pulled up a tentacle (触须) they believe came from a jellyfish.
“We were operating on the presumption that nothing’s there.” said NASA ice scientist Robert Bindschadler. “It was a shrimp you’d enjoy havin
g on your plate.”
“We were just gaga (狂热的) over it,” he said when talking about the 7.5cm long, orange creature starring in their two-minute video. Technically, it’s not a shrimp. It’s a Lyssianasid amphipod, which is distantly related to the shrimp.
The video is likely to inspire experts to rethink what they know about life in harsh environments. And it has scientists thinking that if shrimp-like creatures can live below 180 meters of Antarctic ice in freezing dark water, what about other cold places? What about Europa, a frozen moon of Jupiter?
Cynan Ellis – Evans, a scientist of the British Antarctic Survey called the finding fascinating. He said it was possible the creatures swam in from far away and don’t live there permanently.
But Kim, who is a co-author of the study, doubts it. “The site in West Antarctica is at least 19 km from open seas. Bindschadler drilled a 20 cm-wide hole and was looking at a tiny amount of water. That means it’s unlikely that two creatures swam from great distances and were captured randomly in that small area,” she said.
“Yet scientists were puzzled at what the food source would be for these creatures. While some microbes can make their own food out of chemicals in the ocean, complex life like the shrimp can’t,” Kim said.
“So how do they survive? That’s the key question.” Kim said.
“It’s pretty amazing when you find a huge puzzle like that on a planet where we thought we know everything.” Kim said.
【小题1】. Scientists had believed that harsh environments could only have been populated by ______ .
| A．jellyfish | B．mammals | C．microbes | D．shrimp-like creatures |
| A．swam great distances to Antarctic | B．has always lived in the area |
| C．gradually evolved from shrimps | D．has nothing in common with shrimps |
| A．it marks NASA’S first Antarctic biological study |
| B．it proves there is marine life in the Antarctic |
| C．it could inspire further study of life in harsh environments |
| D．it shows that Lyssianasid amphipod is closely related to shrimps |
| A．researchers will look at the places the creatures came from |
| B．ice scientists will drill deeper to find more creatures |
C．scientists know very little about the planet they live o n |
| D．further research will be done about what the creatures live on |
My alarm o’clock rings in my ears at 5:00 every morning. On hearing the ring, I will get out of bed and put on my glasses. The house is quiet as I walk downstairs while my husband and three kids sleep in peace. Instead of going for a long run as usual, today I chose my favorite exercise DVD and started moving. Sweat rolled down my face and into my eyes. My heart beat wildly as I face my body to finish each movement before a mirror. Of course I felt extremely tired towards the end, but a smile spread across my face. I smiled because the DVD was over, and there appeared a brighter smile of success from pushing my body to its extreme limit.
While some people are fond of chocolate, shopping, smoking, or work, what I need is taking exercise to pass each day. People shake their heads when they see me run with sweating heavily through the town. Some look surprised when I refuse to try just one bite of chocolate cake. They seem greatly puzzled by my “no thank you,” or by my choice to just have a vegetable salad. I have come to realize that it doesn’t matter to just say “No.” to any kind of food that I don’t want to eat.
Do you wonder what drives me to roll out of bed at 5:00 a.m. every morning? What makes me refuse ice cream firmly? Commitment—I’m determined to change my life with a way which can not only free me from daily anxiety, but also increase energy and self–confidence. And above all it will surely help me to keep good body shape and maybe extend my life. This is the real reason why there’s a huge smile spreading across my face when I look at myself in the mirror or try on my favorite pair of jeans that now fit me just right and look perfectly on me. I never doubt that I cannot make a difference within myself inside and out without such commitment and sweat.
【小题1】From the text we can conclude that the author___________.
| A．desires to look different from others. |
| B．expects to develop a good body shape. |
| C．has difficulty getting along with others. |
| D．behaves strangely every morning she gets up |
| A．Others don’t understand the author. |
| B．Others help the author by offering her food. |
| C．The author doesn’t understand others. |
| D．The author hates to make others surprised. |
| A．good health | B．firm belief | C．a habit | D．a permission |
| A．Because she sees her family sleeping peacefully. |
| B．Because she finishes her favorite exercise. |
| C．Because she enjoys the inspiring DVD music. |
| D．Because she feels a sense of achievement |