Question

What makes one person more intelligent than another? What makes one person a genius, like the brilliant Albert Einstein, and another person a fool? Are people born intelligent or stupid, or is intelligence the result of where and how you live? These are very old questions and the answers to them are still not clear.
We know, however, that just being born with a good mind is not enough. In some ways, the mind is like a leg or an arm muscle. It needs exercise. Mental (done with the mind) exercise is particularly important for young children. Many child psychologists (心理学家) think that parents should play with their children more often and give them problems to think about. The children are then more likely to grow up bright and intelligent. If, on the other hand, children are left alone a great deal with nothing to do, they are more likely to become dull and unintelligent.
Parents should also be careful with what they say to young children. According to some psychologists, if parents are always telling a child that he or she is a fool or an idiot, then the child is more likely to keep doing silly and foolish things. So it is probably better for parents to say very positive (helpful) things to their children, such as “That was a very clever thing you did.” or “You are such a smart child.”
【小题1】The words “intelligent” and “brilliant” in the first paragraph probably mean _______ while “dull” in the second paragraph means ________.

A．great and important; common

B．pretty and handsome; ordinary-looking

C．bright and splendid; slow in thinking and understanding

D．hopeful and helpful; careless

【小题2】A person ________ is more likely to become a genius.

A．whose parents are clever

B．often thinking about difficult problems

C．often helped by his parents and teachers

D．born with a good brain and putting it into active use

【小题3】It is better for parents ________.

A．to praise and encourage their children more often

B．to be hard on their children

C．to leave their children alone with nothing to do

D．to give their children as much help as possible

【小题4】Which of the following is NOT true according to the article?

A．Parents play an important part in their children’s growth.

B．Intelligence is obviously the result of where and how you live.

C．The less you use your mind the duller you may become.

D．What makes a person bright or stupid is still under discussion.

Answer 1

【小题1】C
【小题2】D
【小题3】A
【小题4】B

解析试题分析：本文讨论的是关于影响孩子智力发展的因素，有先天的因素也有后天的锻炼。
【小题1】C 推理题。根据第一段What makes one person more intelligent than another? What makes one person a genius, like the brilliant Albert Einstein, and another person a fool?说明这里的intelligent和dull都是关于智力表现的意思，和爱因斯坦一样的就是intelligent，相反的就是dull，故C正确。
【小题2】D 推理题。根据文章第二段前一半内容说明从小时候要给孩子适当的训练，让他们的思维能得到锻炼，故D项正确。
【小题3】A 细节题。根据文章最后3行So it is probably better for parents to say very positive (helpful) things to their children, such as “That was a very clever thing you did.” or “You are such a smart child.”说明我们要经常表扬我们的孩子，给他们以积极的心理暗示，故A正确。
【小题4】B 推理题。根据文章第二段1,2行We know, however, that just being born with a good mind is not enough. In some ways, the mind is like a leg or an arm muscle. It needs exercise.说明出生并不能决定我们的智力。后天的培养也很重要，故B项正确。
考点：考查社会知识类短文
点评：本题考查的推理题较多，推断题测试考生在阅读基础上的逻辑推理能力，要求考生根据文章所述事件的逻辑关系，对未说明的趋势或结局作出合理的推断；或根据作者所阐述的观点理论，对文章未涉及的现象、事例给以解释。考生首先要仔细阅读短文，完整了解信息，准确把握作者观点。