B

We might think we know which colours do what.The idea that red wakes us up or blue calms us down is deeply rooted in Western culture.But do they really change our behaviour in the ways that we assume?

When it comes to scientific research, the results are mixed and at times contested.Some studies have found that people do better on cognitive tasks when faced with red rather than blue or green; others show the opposite.The idea is that if you repeatedly have a particular experience surrounded by a certain colour, then you eventually begin to associate that colour with the way you were feeling or behaving.A school career spent reading your teacher’s red writing circling your mistakes forever makes you link red with danger.Blue meanwhile is more likely to be associated with calmer situations like marvelling at a big blue expanse of sky.

Of course there will always be exceptions --- the comment from the teacher saying “well done” is also written in red.It is true that people do make different associations with different colours, but whether this translates into behaving in a certain way or succeeding at a particular task is a different question.

In 2009 researchers tried to clarify the situation.They sat their participants at computer screens colored blue, red or “neutral” and tested them on various tasks.With a red screen people did better on tasks requiring attention to detail, but when the screen was blue they did better on creative tasks.In practice this might be tricky.In a classroom you might want to think creatively some of the time and pay attention to detail at others.

However, when another team tried to repeat the study with a larger group of people in 2014, the effect of color disappeared.The initial study consisted of just 69 people.In this new, bigger study, of 263 volunteers, background color made no difference.

So colors might well have an effect, but so far those effects have been difficult to demonstrate consistently and sometimes don’t seem to exist at all.

1.What’s the major function of the first paragraph?

A.To present a widely held view

B.To raise a question of behavior change

C.To introduce the theme of the passage

D.To summarize the whole passage

2.The author mentions the exception in Paragraph 3 in order to show _____.

A.there are exceptions to every rule

B.people tend to associate colors with behaviors

C.colors don’t necessarily mean particular behaviors

D.colors do matter to those who desire success

3.It can be concluded from the results of the studies in 2009 and 2014 that _____.

A.the research findings are practical in indoor decoration

B.solid evidence is inadequate to prove how colors affect us

C.a larger study may help confirm colors’ effects on our behaviors

D.walls should be painted different colors depending on different tasks

A new generation addiction is quickly spreading all over the world. Weboholism(网瘾), a twentieth century disease, affects people from different ages. They surf the net, use e-mail and speak in chat rooms. They spend many hours on the computer, and it becomes a compulsive habit. They cannot stop, and it affects their lives.

Ten years ago, no one thought that using computers could become compulsive behavior that could affect the social and physical life of computer users. Such behavior has seriously affected teenagers and college students. They are likely to log(写日志) on computers and spend long hours at different websites.

They become hooked(着迷) on computers and gradually their social and school life is affected by this situation. They spend all free time surfing and don’t concentrate on homework, so this addiction influences their grades and success at school. Because they can find everything on the websites, they hang out there. Moreover, this addiction to websites influences their social life.

They spend more time in front of computers than with their friends. The relation with their friends changes. The virtual life becomes more important than their real life. They have a new language that they speak in the chat rooms and it causes cultural changes in society.

Because of the change in their behavior, they begin to isolate themselves from society and live with their virtual friends. They share their emotions and feelings with friends who they have never met in their life. Although they feel confident on the computer, they are not confident with real live friends they have known all their life. It is a problem for the future. This addictive behavior is beginning to affect all the world.

1.The main idea of the passage is about__________.

A. the cause of weboholism

B. the advantage of weboholism

C. the popularity of weboholism

D. the effect of weboholism

2.We can infer from the passage that_______.

A. weboholism has the greatest effect on teenagers

B. students can hardly balance real and virtual life

C. people are addicted to games on the Internet

D. virtual life is more vivid and attractive than real life.

3.Which of the following is NOT true of weboholism?

A. It contributes to the development of the web.

B. The chat room language may change social culture.

C. The problem will be getting more and more serious later.

D. People addicted to the web often become inactive in real life.

The scientist from the Lockheed Space Company work in Felton, California, with the help of a computer. But the computer is placed in Sunnyside, about 80 kilometers away. What scientists input (输入) is sent by telephone lines to the computer, and after a time, copies of the designs are needed back in Felton as quickly as possible Lockheed people have tried several ways of sending the prints, but the most effective seems to be by pigeon. Are pigeons really used to carry messages in these days? They are, and they send the prints faster and cheaper than any other way.

Human messengers are much more expensive and slower than the pigeons. The road to Felton goes through the mountains, and the driving is not easy. An electronic printout (电子打印输出) system could do the work in Felton, but at a cost of 10 dollars a print. Pigeons carry the designs for about 1 dollar each.

Now Lockheed people have ten pigeon messengers. The pigeons do the work, and they have made Lockheed more famous. You can often read the news about pigeons in the newspapers around the world.

1.The passage is mainly about ___________________.

A. Felton, California

B. the scientists

C. how to work with computers

D. sending prints by pigeon

2.This story is unusual because pigeons ____________________.

A. don’t like carrying things

B. are often expensive to keep

C. seem out of place in the space age

D. aren’t friendly to the scientists

3.Something that’s effective ________________________.

A. usually costs more

B. is something that works

C. is often unhappy

D. is often done by animals

THANK-you cards--heartfelt expressions of gratitude for gifts, services and general kindness--seem to be rare in an age when the Internet continues to reduce human interaction.

Although our society has changed greatly over the past century, the etiquette of thank-you notes has not.

While most people would agree that thank-you notes under these circumstances are a necessity, there are still those who forever postpone or are forgetful for unknown reasons.

And at no time of the year are thank-you notes more visible (or lacking) than June, the month of graduations, and the beginning of summer parties.

"It's a must-do thing. A real thank you does not come by e-mail. It comes in the mail in an envelope. And what comes out of an envelope is a beautiful thing to touch and to handle and to pass around for everyone to read," said etiquette expert Letitia Baldrige.

Don't think for a second that Baldrige is old-fashioned. Handwritten thank-you notes--any handwritten correspondence, for that matter- have taken on an air of extra importance and dignity (庄重) in this e-hyper (电子狂躁的) world.

Baldrige remains hopeful that the art may be enjoying a renaissance (复兴,再生).

More than simply obeying rules of etiquette, thank-you cards are a sign of caring.

"They're more important now than ever," expert Peter Post says. "You are building a relationship. And part of building that relationship is that you acknowledge when someone has done something nice for you. "

"The payoff," Post says, "can be huge. The more we do it, the more it comes back to us, and it's a benefit to us all. It makes our world a little bit nicer place to live in. "

1.Nowadays thank-you cards seem to be rare mainly because ______.

A. people think that they are out of fashion

B. it is quicker to say thanks by e-mail

C. the Internet has reduced people's contact

D. people are too busy to remember these things

2.From the context, the word "etiquette" in the second paragraph probably means ______.

A. old objects for sale

B. rules for people to obey

C. hand-made articles

D. customs for polite behavior

3.The author implies in this article that ______.

A. old-fashioned people take a negative attitude to e-mails

B. the changing society is making people impolite and lazy

C. modern technology is driving people apart

D. the e-hyper world is not a nice place to live in

4.What’s Baldrige’s attitude towards handwritten thank-you cards?

A. Regretful to disappear

B. Promising to come back

C. Old-fashioned to keep

D. Unnecessary between friends

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