题目内容
— Don't you think those words are just sour grapes?
B. load
C. question
D. waste
阅读快车系列答案The ability to memorize things seems to be a vanishing （消失的） technique．So what can we do to bring out brain cells back into action? A newly published book on memory, Moomvalking with Einstein: The Art and Science of Remembering Everything, by American journalist Joshua Foer, makes a telling point, one that is an analysis of the importance of memorising events and stories in human history; the decline of its role in modem life; and the techniques that we need to adopt to restore the art of remembering．
As For points out, we no longer need to remember telephone numbers．Our mobile phones do that for us．We don't recall addresses either．We send emails from computers that store electronic addresses．Nor do we bother to remember multiplication tables （乘法表） ．Pocket calculators do the job of multiplying quite nicely．Museums, photographs, the digital media and books also act as storehouses for memories that once we had to keep in mind．
As a result, we no longer remember long poems or folk stories by heart, feats （技艺） of memory that were once the cornerstones of most people's lives．Indeed, society has changed so much that we no longer know what techniques we should employ to remember such lengthy works．We are, quite simply, forgetting how to remember．
And let's face it, there is nothing sadder than someone who has lost their mobile phone and who finds they cannot even phone home or call their parents or partners because they cannot remember a single telephone number．That is a sad example of loss of personal independence．So, yes, there is a need for us to he able to remember certain things in life．
Therefore, Foer's book outlines the methods that need to be mastered in order to promote our memories and regain the ability to recall long strings of names, numbers or faces．In the process, he adds, we will become more aware of the world about us．
The trick, Foer says, is to adopt a process known as " elaborative encoding", which involves transforming information, such as a shopping list, into a series of "absorbing visual images"．If you want to remember a list of household objects—potatoes, cottage cheese, sugar and other items, then visualise them in an unforgettable manner, he says．Start by creating an image of a large jar of potatoes standing in the garden．Next to it, imagine a giant tub of cottage cheese—the size of an outdoor pool—and then picture Lady Gaga swimming in it．And so on．Each image should be as fantastic and memorable as possible．
Using methods like this, it becomes possible to achieve great feats of memory quite easily, Foer says．It certainly seems to have worked for him: he won the annual US Memory Championships after learning how to memorize 120 random digits in five minutes; the first and last names of 156 strangers in 15 minutes; and a deck of cards in under two minutes．"What I had really trained my brain to do, as much as to memorise, was to be more mindful and to pay attention to the world around," he says．
These techniques employed by Foer to master his memory were developed by Ed Cooke—a British writer and a world memory championship grandmaster．He acted as Foer's trainer during preparations for the book and helped him achieve his championship performances．" Memory techniques do just one thing: they make information more meaningful to the mind, making the things we try to learn unforgettably bright and amusing," said Cooke．
1.Which of the following is conveyed in this article?
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A．People become more independent with modern equipment． |
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B．The memory's role in life is declining in modem society． |
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C．Memory techniques can make information less meaningful． |
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D．Ed Cooke is the first one who benefited from Foer's techniques． |
2.According to Joshua Foer, people no longer memorize information today because________．
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A．museums can do everything for them． |
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B．they no longer have the ability to memorize things． |
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C．they have things that can act as storehouses for memories． |
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D．it is not necessary to memorize anything in modem life． |
3.One method of memorizing things mentioned in the passage is to ________．
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A．link things to famous pop stars |
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B．find the connection between different things |
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C．form vivid, unforgettable images of certain things |
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D．use advanced digital imaging technology to help |
4.The underlined word "visualise" in the last paragraph most probably means "_______"．
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A．imagine |
B．undertake |
C．remark |
D．indicate |
5.This passage can be sorted as ________．
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A．a news report |
B．an advertisement |
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C．a scientific discovery |
D．a book review |
阅读下面短文，根据所读内容在表格中的空白处填入恰当的单词。注意：每个空格只填一个单词。
Farmers and gardeners have long used greenhouses to extend the growing season in cold weather. Now, hoop houses are gaining popularity. Some hoop houses are rounded; others are shaped more like a traditional house.
A hoop house is basically a metal frame covered with plastic or other all-weather material. A common design looks like a high tunnel. Unlike a greenhouse, which uses a heating system, a hoop house is heated by the warmth of the sun.
Now, the United States Department of Agriculture has announced a program to help farmers who want to build hoop houses. The department has been supporting a project in Michigan. That state has a short growing season. As part of the research project, nine farmers were given materials and trained how to build and use a hoop house. The results showed that well-managed hoop houses can grow high-quality crops.
However, crops are not the only things that grow well. The research found that weeds grow faster in a hoop house. Weeding (除草), seeding and watering requires at least as much work as crops grown in the open air. The researchers also advise growers to add compost（堆肥） material to the soil in hoop houses to build nutrients.
Eliot Coleman is an organic farmer and a writer in Maine who has helped popularize the idea of four-season farming. His ideas about hoop houses sounded good to John Biernbaum in the Horticulture（园艺）Department at Michigan State University.
Professor Biernbaum tried hoop houses on the Student Organic Farm at Michigan State and had success. Project director David Conner says it was a "test drive（试车）" for the research on private farms. The agricultural economist points to the demand for locally grown crops. "People are hungry for good, fresh vegetables," he says.
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Topic |
Hoop houses |
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Design |
56._________ |
·Like a high tunnel ·Some round ; others like a 57. house. |
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Material |
·Metal frame. ·Plastic or other all-weather material. |
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58. |
The warmth of the sun. |
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Research project in Michigan |
The program |
·It is 59._________by the US Department of Agriculture. ·Michigan was chosen due to its short 60._________season. ·Nine farmers were given materials and trained how to build and use a hoop house. ·It is greatly 61._________by the ideas from Eliot Coleman. |
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62. |
·High-quality crops can grow in well-managed hoop houses. ·Weeds also grow faster in hoop houses. |
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63. |
·Weeding, seeding and watering needs as much work as naturally grown crops. ·64. should be added to the soil. |
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Significance |
Demand for locally grown crops 65._________further research on private farms. |
56 57 58 59 60
61 62 63 64 65
Computer people talk a lot about the need for other people to become “computer-literate.” But not all experts (专家) agree that this is a good idea.
One pioneer, in particular, who disagrees is David Tebbutt, the founder of Computertown UK. Although many people see this as a successful attempt to bring people closer to the computer. David does not see it that way. He says that Computertown UK was formed for just the opposite reason, to bring computers to people and make them “people-literate.” David Tebbutt thinks Computertowns are most successful when tied to a computer club but he insists there is an important difference between the two. The clubs are for people who have some computer knowledge already. This frightens away non-experts, who are happier going to Computertowns where there are computers for them to experiment on, with experts to encourage them and answer any questions they have. They are not told what to do, they find out.The computer experts have to learn not to tell people about computers, but have to be able to answer all questions people ask. People don’t have to learn computer terms(术语), but the experts have to explain in plain language. The computers are becoming “people-literate.”
1.Which of the following is David Tebbutt’s ides on the relationship between people and computers?
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A．Computer learning should be made easier. |
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B．There should be more computer clubs for experts. |
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C．People should work harder to master computer use. |
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D．Computers should be made cheaper so that people can afford them. |
2.We can infer from the text that “computer-lilerate” means_______.
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A．being able to afford a computer |
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B．being able to write computer programs |
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C．working with the computer and finding out its value |
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D．understanding the computer and knowing how to use it |
3.The underlined word “it” in the second paragraph refers to the idea that Computertowns ___.
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A．help to set up more computer clubs |
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B．bring people to learn to use computers |
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C．bring more experts to work together |
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D．help to sell computers to the public |
4.David Tebbutt started Computertown UK with the purpose of______.
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A．making better use of computer expert |
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B．improving computer programs |
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C．increasing omputersales |
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D．popularising computers |