Question

A maths talent who won fame this week for giving up a million?dollar prize is living with his mother in a simple flat in St Petersburg，co?existing on her ￡ 30?a?month pension，because he has been unemployed for many years.

The Sunday Telegraph tracked down the strange recluse(隐士) who shocked the maths world when he solved a century?old puzzle known as the Poincaré Conjecture.

Grigory Perelman's trouble comes from a split with a leading Russian mathematical institute，the Steklov，in 2003.When the Institute in St Petersburg failed to re?elect him as a member，Dr Perelman was left feeling an “absolutely ungifted and untalented person”，said a friend.He became unconfident and cut himself off.

Other friends say he cannot afford to travel to the International Mathematical Union's congress in Madrid，where many people want him to receive the maths equivalent(等价物) of the Nobel Prize，and that he is too modest to ask anyone to pay for his trip.

Interviewed in St Petersburg，Dr Perelman insisted that he was unworthy of all the attention，and was uninterested in the prize.“I do not think anything that I say can be of the slightest public interest，” he said. “I am not saying that because I value my privacy，or that I am doing anything I want to hide.There are no top?secret projects going on here.I just believe the public has no interest in me.”

He continued: “I know that self?promotion happens a lot and if people want to do that，good luck to them，but I do not regard it as a positive thing.I realized this a long time ago and nobody is going to change my mind. Newspapers should be more discerning(有洞察力的) over who they write about.They should have more taste.As far as I am concerned，I can't offer anything for their readers.”

Dr Perelman has some small savings from his time as a lecturer，but is apparently unwilling to increase them with the D＄1 million offered by the Clay Mathematics Institute in Cambridge，Massachusetts，for solving one of the world's seven “Millennium Problems”．

1．Grigory Perelman lives with his mother because ________.

A．he has to look after her

B．his mother has a million dollars

C．he has been out of work for a long time

D．he is badly paid at the mathematical institute

2. The phrase“absolutely ungifted and untalented person”shows that Dr Perelman felt ________.

A．angry　　　　　　　　　　B．discouraged

C．proud　　　　　　　　　 D．confident

3．Grigory Perelman refused to accept the prize because ________.

A．he thought the prize was worthless

B．he didn't believe the news

C．he couldn't afford to travel to Madrid

D．he showed no interest in it

4．From the passage, we can infer that Grigory Perelman ________.

A．solved the most difficult maths problem

B．has a strong personality

C．wanted to make himself known to all

D．didn't get on well with the press

5．What's the best title for the passage?

A．Great Mathematician Leads Simple Life

B．Maths Genius Abandons a Million?dollar Prize

C．Mathematics Institute Offers Grigory D＄1 Million

D．One of the World's Seven “Millennium Problems” Solved

 

 

Answer 1

1-5 CBDBB

 

语篇解读：数学天才Perelman博士因没有被选进俄罗斯数学研究所和母亲隐居在圣彼得堡，虽然他由于解决数学界世纪难题而震撼了数学界，却放弃了一百万美元的奖励金，Perelman坚持说自己不值得媒体和公众的关注。

1．细节理解题。第一段介绍Grigory Perelman生活状况及原因，他和母亲住在圣彼得堡一所简陋的房里和母亲一起靠她一个月30英镑的退休金过日子，因为他已多年没有工作。由此看出C项正确。

2. 细节理解题。第三段解释Perelman生活艰苦的原因：由于圣彼得堡的数学研究所没有选中他，据他朋友说，他就感觉自己是一个绝对没有天赋不聪明的人。从那时起他便不再有自信、与世隔绝，由此看出Perelman感觉没有信心，失望。

3. 细节理解题。第五段说明Dr Perelman放弃奖金的原因。第一句在圣彼得堡家中接受采访时Dr Perelman坚持说他不值得关注，并且对奖金不感兴趣。所以D项正确。

4. 推理判断题。文章第一段介绍Perelman尽管生活困难，但他放弃了一百万美元的奖金，第五、六、七段写他尽管解决了数学界的世纪难题，但他不想成为人们关注的焦点，不想引起人们对他的注意。所以B项正确。

5. 主旨大意题。文章主要报道数学天才Perelman解决了一道数学世纪难题，却放弃一百万美元的奖励金的事例，所以文章以B项为标题比较合适。