Can you believe your eyes? A recent experiment suggests that the answer to that question may depend on your age.
Martin Doherty, a psychologist at the University of Stirling in Scotland, led the team of scientists. In this experiment, Doherty and his team tested the perception(观察力) of some people, using pictures of some orange circles. The researchers showed the same pictures to two groups of people. The first group included 151 children aged 4 to 10, and the second group included 24 adults aged 18 to 25.
The first group of pictures showed two circles alone on a white background. One of the circles was larger than the other, and these people were asked to identify the larger one. Four-year-olds identified the correct circle 79 percent of the time. Adults identified the correct circle 95 percent of the time.
Next, both groups were shown a picture where the orange circles, again of different sizes, were surrounded by gray circles. Here’s where the trick lies in. In some of the pictures, the smaller orange circle was surrounded by even smaller gray circles — making the orange circle appear larger than the other orange circle, which was the real larger one. And the larger orange circle was surrounded by even bigger gray circles — so it appeared to be smaller than the real smaller orange circle.
When young children aged 4 to 6 looked at these tricky pictures, they weren’t fooled—they were still able to find the bigger circle with roughly the same accuracy as before. Older children and adults, on the other hand, did not do as well. Older children often identified the smaller circle as the larger one, and adults got it wrong most of the time.
As children get older, Doherty said, their brains may develop the ability to identify visual context. In other words, they will begin to process the whole picture at once: the tricky gray circles, as well as the orange circle in the middle. As a result, they’re more likely to fall for this kind of visual trick.
【小题1】Doherty and his team of scientists did an experiment to evaluate       .

A.children’s and adults’ eye-sight
B.people’s ability to see accurately
C.children’s and adults’ brains
D.the influence of people’s age
【小题2】When asked to find the larger circle,________.
A.children at 6 got it wrong 79 % of the time with no gray ones around
B.only adults over 18 got it right 95% of the time with gray ones around
C.children at 4 got it right about 79 % of the time with gray ones around
D.adults got it right most of the time with gray ones around
【小题3】 According to the passage, we can know that________.
A.a smaller orange circle appears bigger on a white background
B.an orange circle appears bigger than a gray one of the same size
C.a circle surrounded by other circles looks bigger than its real size
D.a circle surrounded by bigger ones looks smaller than its real size
【小题4】Visual context may work when children get older than________.
A.4B.6C.10D.18
【小题5】Why are younger children not fooled?
A.Because they are smarter than older children and adults.
B.Because older people are influenced by their experience.
C.Because people’s eyes become weaker as they grow older.
D.Because their brain can hardly notice related things together.

One thing the tour books don’t tell you about London is that 2,000 of its residents are foxes. They ran away from the city about centuries ago after developers and pollution moved in. But now that the environment is cleaner, the foxes have come home, one of the many wild animals that have moved into urban areas around the world.
“The number and variety of wild animals in urban areas is increasing,” says Gomer Jones, president of the National Institute for Urban Wildlife, in Columbia, Maryland. A survey of the wildlife in New York’s Central Park last year tallied the species of mammals, including muskrats, shrews and flying squirrels. A similar survey conducted in the 1890s counted only five species. One of the country’s largest populations of raccoons (浣熊) now lives in Washington D.C., and moose (驼鹿) are regularly seen wandering into Maine towns. Peregrine falcons(游隼) dive from the window ledges of buildings in the largest U.S. cities to prey on (捕食) pigeons.
Several changes have brought wild animals to the cities. Foremost is that air and water quality in many cities has improved as a result of the 1970s pollution-control efforts. Meanwhile, rural areas have been built up, leaving many animals on the edges of suburbs. In addition, urban wildlife refuges (避难处)have been created. The Greater London Council last year spent£750,000 to buy land and build 10 permanent wildlife refuges in the city. Over 1,000 volunteers have donated money and cleared rubble from derelict lots. One evening last year a fox was seen on Westminster Bridge looking up at Big Ben.
For peregrine falcons, cities are actually safer than rural cliff dwellings (悬崖栖息地). By 1970 the birds had died out east of the Mississippi because the DDT had made their eggs too thin to support life. That year, scientist Tom Cade of Cornell University began raising the birds for release in cities, for cities afforded abundant food.
Cities can attract wild animals without turning them harmful. The trick is to create habitats where they can be self-sufficient but still be seen and appreciated. Such habitats can even be functional. In San Francisco, the local government is testing different kinds of rainwater control basins to see not only which ones retain (保持) the cleanest water but which will attract the most birds.
【小题1】The first paragraph suggests that ________.

A.environment is crucial for wildlife
B.tour books are not always a reliable source of information
C.London is a city of fox  
D.foxes are highly adaptable to environment
【小题2】Which of the following is NOT a reason that wildlife is returning to the cities?
A.Food is plentiful in the cities.
B.Wildlife is appreciated in the cities.
C.Wildlife refuges have been built in the cities
D.Air and water quality has improved in the cities
【小题3】The underlined word “tallied” in Para. 2 means __________.
A.distinguished B.describedC.countedD.excluded
【小题4】It can be inferred from the passage that _________.
A.Londoners are putting more and more wild animals into their zoos.
B.Londoners are happy to see wild animals return to their city
C.Londoners are trying to move wild animals back to the countryside
D.Londoners have welcomed the wild birds, but found foxes a problem
【小题5】What is the passage mainly about?
A.Wildlife returning to large cities
B.Foxes returning to London
C.Wild animals living in zoos
D.A survey of wildlife in New York

Sunny countries are often poor. A shame, then, that solar power is still quite expensive. Eight19, a British company by Cambridge University, has, however, invented a novel way to get round this. In return for a deposit of around $10 it is supplying poor Kenyan families with a solar cell able to generate 2.5 watts of electricity, a battery that can deliver a three amp(安培) current to store this electricity, and a lamp whose bulb is a light-emitting diode(二极管). The firm thinks that this system, once the battery is fully charged, is enough to light two small rooms and to power a mobile-phone charger for seven hours. Then, next day, it can be put outside and charged back up again.
The trick is that, to be able to use the electricity, the system's keeper must buy a scratch card—for as little as a dollar—on which is printed a reference number. The keeper sends this reference, plus the serial number of the household solar unit, by SMS to Eight19. The company's server will respond automatically with an access code to the unit. 
Users may consider that they are paying an hourly rate for their electricity. In fact, they are paying off the cost of the unit. After buying around $80 worth of scratch cards—which Eight19 expects would take the average family around 18 months—the user will own it. He will then have the option of continuing to use it for nothing, or of trading it in for a bigger one, perhaps driven by a 10-watt solar cell. 
In that case, he would go then through the same process again, paying off the additional cost of the upgraded kit at a slightly higher rate. Users would therefore increase their electricity supply steadily and affordably.
According to Eight19's figures, this looks like a good deal for customers. The firm believes the average energy-starved Kenyan spends around $10 a month on oil—enough to fuel a couple of smoky lamps—plus $2 on charging his mobile phone in the market-place. Regular users of one of Eight19's basic solar units will spend around half that, before owning it completely. Meanwhile, as the cost of solar technology falls, it should get even cheaper.
【小题1】The underlined word “get round” in the first paragraph can be replaced by _______ .

A.make use ofB.come up withC.look intoD.deal with
【小题2】What should the user do when the electricity in the battery is used up?
A.Buy a scratch card. B.Recharge it outside.
C.Buy another solar cell.D.Return it to the company.
【小题3】How much would users pay for the cell and scratch cards before they own a 2.5-watt solar cell?
A.Around $10.B.Around $80.C.Around $90.D.Around $180.
【小题4】It can be inferred from the last paragraph that  ____________.
A.Kenyan families would find it difficult to afford the solar cell
B.using the solar cell would help Kenyan families save money
C.few Kenyan families use mobile phones for lack of electricity
D.the company will make a great profit from selling solar cells
【小题5】What might be the most suitable title for the passage?
A.Solar Energy: Starting from Scratch.
B.Eight19: a creative British Company.
C.Kenyan Families: Using Solar Energy for Free.
D.Poor Countries: Beginning to Use Solar Energy.

With the new school year quickly coming near (or perhaps, for your early-starters, already under way), it’s time to get ready for a successful term(学期). And while you may be cleaning your wardrobe(壁柜), it’s equally important to freshen up(更新) your study skills, too.

Have you ever noticed that your study habits are different from those of your friends? Or how you seem to learn faster in certain classes? Some people are quick to blame(责备) the teacher or subject(学科) for their difficulties, but that isn’t always the cause(原因). One thing that many people seem to ignore(忽视) is their learning type.

Now, you may be wondering what a learning type is and how to find yours. There are three different learning types: Visual, Auditory, and Kinesthetic. You can be a combination of learning types, but most people have one main type.

1. Visual learners learn best by seeing. If you seem to easily get information from pictures, graphs, and videos, you are likely a visual learner.

2. Auditory learners learn best by hearing. If you seem to remember things by hearing them, whether listening to a lecture or repeating information out loud, then you are likely an auditory learner.

3. Kinesthetic learners learn best by doing. If you seem to learn best by working with your hands or testing out what you are shown, you are likely a kinesthetic learner.

So now that you know your personal learning style, the trick (窍门) is to find out how to use your new-found knowledge to help you in your classes.

1.According to the speaker, why are some students slower than others in a certain subject?

A.Because they find the subject too difficult.

B.Because they have lost interest in the subject.

C.Because their teacher is not good enough.

D.Because they don’t know their learning type.

2.Which of the following can best replace the underlined word “combination”?

A.success

B.mixture

C.wonder

D.model

3.Stephen loves science and usually does experiments with his classmates in the lab to test what he has learned. So what type of learner is he?

A.Visual

B.Auditory

C.Kinesthetic

D.Both A and B

4.What do you think the speaker is going to do next?

A.To give further explanation to the three types of learners.

B.To give clear examples of the three types of learners.

C.To make a survey(调查) about the three types of learners.

D.To suggest different study skills to different types of learners.

 

Can you believe your eyes? A recent experiment suggests that the answer to that question may depend on your age.

Martin Doherty, a psychologist at the University of Stirling in Scotland, led the team of scientists. In this experiment, Doherty and his team tested the perception(观察力) of some people, using pictures of some orange circles. The researchers showed the same pictures to two groups of people. The first group included 151 children aged 4 to 10, and the second group included 24 adults aged 18 to 25.

The first group of pictures showed two circles alone on a white background. One of the circles was larger than the other, and these people were asked to identify the larger one. Four-year-olds identified the correct circle 79 percent of the time. Adults identified the correct circle 95 percent of the time.

Next, both groups were shown a picture where the orange circles, again of different sizes, were surrounded by gray circles. Here’s where the trick lies in. In some of the pictures, the smaller orange circle was surrounded by even smaller gray circles — making the orange circle appear larger than the other orange circle, which was the real larger one. And the larger orange circle was surrounded by even bigger gray circles — so it appeared to be smaller than the real smaller orange circle.

When young children aged 4 to 6 looked at these tricky pictures, they weren’t fooled — they were still able to find the bigger circle with roughly the same accuracy as before. Older children and adults, on the other hand, did not do as well. Older children often identified the smaller circle as the larger one, and adults got it wrong most of the time.

As children get older, Doherty said, their brains may develop the ability to identify visual context. In other words, they will begin to process the whole picture at once: the tricky gray circles, as well as the orange circle in the middle. As a result, they’re more likely to fall for this kind of visual trick.

1.Doherty and his team of scientists did an experiment to evaluate       .

A.children’s and adults’ eye-sight

B.people’s ability to see accurately

C.children’s and adults’ brains

D.the influence of people’s age

2.When asked to find the larger circle,       .

A.children at 6 got it wrong 79 % of the time with no gray ones around

B.only adults over 18 got it right 95% of the time with gray ones around

C.children at 4 got it right about 79 % of the time with gray ones around

D.adults got it right most of the time with gray ones around

3.According to the passage, we can know that       .

A.a smaller orange circle appears bigger on a white background

B.an orange circle appears bigger than a gray one of the same size

C.a circle surrounded by other circles looks bigger than its real size

D.a circle surrounded by bigger ones looks smaller than its real size

4.Visual context may work when children get older than       .

A.4

B.6

C.10

D.18

5.Why are younger children not fooled?

A.Because they are smarter than older children and adults.

B.Because older people are influenced by their experience.

C.Because people’s eyes become weaker as they grow older.

D.Because their brain can hardly notice related things together.

 

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