The term “multitasking” originally referred to a computer’s ability to carry out several tasks at one time. For many people, multitasking has become a way of life and even a key to success. In fact, some excellent mental aerobic exercises (大脑训练) involve engaging the brain in two or more challenging activities at a time. Although checking e-mail while talking on a phone and reading the newspaper may be second nature for some people, many times multitasking can make us less productive, rather than more. And studies show that too much multitasking can lead to increased stress, anxiety and memory loss.

   In order to multitask, the brain uses an area known as the prefrontal cortex (前额叶脑皮层). Brian scans of volunteers performing multiple tasks together show that as they shift from task to task, this front part of the brain actually takes a moment of rest between tasks. You may have experienced a prefrontal cortex “moment of rest” yourself if you’ve ever dialed (拨电话) a phone number and suddenly forgotten who you dialed when the line is answered. What probably occurred is that between the dialing and the answering, your mind shifted to anther thought or task, and then took that “moment” to come back. Research has also shown that for many volunteers, job efficiency (效率) declines while multitasking, as compared to when they perform only one task at a time.

   Multitasking is easiest when at least one of the tasks is habitual, or requires little thought. Most people don’t find it difficult to eat and read the newspaper at the same time. However, when two or more attention-requiring tasks are attempted at one time, people sometimes make mistakes.

   We often don’t remember things as well when we’re trying to manage several details at the same time. Without mental focus, we may not pay enough attention to new information coming in, so it never makes it into our memory stores. That is one of the main reasons we forget people’s names---even sometimes right after they have introduced themselves. Multitasking can also affect our relationships. If someone checks their e-mail while on the phone with a friend, they may come off as absent-minded or disinterested. It can also cause that person to miss or overlook key information being passed on to them.

1.Why are some mental aerobic exercises designed to engage people in multitasking?

    A. To make them more productive.         B. To reduce their stress and anxiety.

C. To develop their communication skills.  D. To help them perform daily tasks more easily.    

2.According to Paragraph 2, why may a person suddenly forget who has called?

 A. He may leave his prefrontal cortex temporarily damaged.

 B. He is probably interrupted by another task.

 C. He is probably not very familiar with the person he has called.

 D. He may need a rest between dialing and speaking.

3.People tend to make mistake when ____.

   A. they perform several challenging tasks at a time.

   B. new messages are processed one after another

   C. their relationships with others are affected

   D. the tasks require little thought

4.What is the main idea of the passage?

A. Multitasking has become a way of life.

B. Multitasking often leads to efficiency decline.

C. Multitasking exercises need to be improved.

D. Multitasking enables people to remember things better.

完形填空 (共20小题；每小题1．5分，满分30分)

       阅读下面短文，掌握其大意，然后从短文后所给各题的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中，选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑

We should learn to put love in motion every day．We should show our children that even the   36  act of kindness counts．

The chiming clock announced it was time to leave for church, but I was far from   37 ．Seeing this, my husband   38   to iron my clothes for me．Our 3-year-old daughter approached him．

“Are you ironing   39   shirt, Daddy? ” she asked．

“No, I’m ironing Mommy’s shirt．”

“Oh, did you think it was your shirt? ” A small giggle（咯咯笑）escaped her   40  ．“That’s silly．” k+s-5#u 

“No, I knew it was Mommy’s shirt．” he said．

A(n)   41   expression crossed my daughter’s face．“Then why are you doing that?”

“Because your Mommy is a special person, and I like to   42   her．” he answered．

“Oh,” she happily replied, and then skipped out of the room．“I’m going to help my brother．”

As our children’s   43   teachers, we know that little eyes watch our every move．They imitate not only our actions, but our 　44  ．For example, we often hear our children   45   their brothers, sisters or friends in a   46   we know they learned from   47  ．But on the positive side, the propensity (倾向性) to   48   can serve us well when we try to model, and   49  teach, an attitude of kindness and cheerful servanthood．

We all try to do nice things for our family．Think about the last time when you cooked a meal or folded laundry．  50   did you feel about   51   your family in this way? Were you glad to do it   52   did you feel resentful that you were stuck with this mundane (平凡的) chore?   53  , none of us has a cheerful servant’s heart every day．  54   if we want our children willingly to reach out to others and show kindness and compassion, it is essential that they see us doing the   55  ．

36．A．biggest    B．smallest  C．least            D．best

37．A．relaxed    B．satisfied         C．ready    D．happy

38．A．showed    B．provided C．supplied    D．offered

39．A．my        B．your            C．our             D．their

40．A．lips       B．nose            C．eyes     D．ears

41．A．upset      B．funny           C．puzzled  D．proud

42．A．offer      B．gain     C．give     D．help

43．A．last       B．first     C．closest   D．best

44．A．behavior B．attitudes   C．manners        D．thought

45．A．praise     B．point    C．appreciate       D．scold

46．A．tone       B．word    C．voice    D．accent

47．A．others      B．friends          C．us              D．teachers

48．A．imitate     B．give            C．obtain           D．learn

49．A．in charge      B．in detail       C．in return             D．in turn

50．A．What     B．How            C．That            D．Whether  

51．A．serving    B．caring         C．leaving          D．building

52．A．and         B．or     C．but        D．otherwise

53．A．Surprisingly     B．Naturally            C．Regularly            D．Patiently

54．A．Maybe     B．Still     C．Otherwise       D．But

55．A．good            B．job            C．example             D．same

Communication technologies are far from equal when it comes to conveying the truth. The first study to compare honesty across a range of communications media has found that people are twice as likely to tell lies in phone conversations as they are in emails. The fact that emails are automatically recorded—and can come back to haunt(困扰) you—appears to be the key to the finding.

Jeff Hancock of Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, asked 30 students to keep a communications diary for a week. In it they noted the number of conversations or email exchanges they had lasting more than 10 minutes, and confessed to how many lies they told. Hancock then worked out the number of lies per conversation for each medium. He found that lies made up 14 percent of emails, 21 percent of instant messages, 27 percent of face-to-face interactions and an astonishing 37 percent of phone calls.

His results, to be presented at the conference on human-computer interaction in Vienna, Austria, in April, have surprised psychologists. Some expected emailers to be the biggest liars, reasoning that because deception makes people uncomfortable, the detachment(非直接接触) of emailing would make it easier to lie. Others expected people to lie more in face-to-face exchanges because we are most practiced at that form of communication.

But Hancock says it is also crucial whether a conversation is being recorded and could be reread, and whether it occurs in real time. People appear to be afraid to lie when they know the communication could later be used to hold them to account, he says. This is why fewer lies appear in email than on the phone.

People are also more likely to lie in real time—in an instant message or phone call, say—than if they have time to think of a response, says Hancock. He found many lies are spontaneous(脱口而出的) responses to an unexpected demand, such as: “Do you like my dress?”

Hancock hopes his research will help companies work out the best ways for their employees to communicate. For instance, the phone might be the best medium for sales where employees are encouraged to stretch the truth. But given his result, work assessment, where honesty is a priority, might be best done using email.

66. Hancock’s study focuses on ________.

A. the consequences of lying in various communications media

B. the success of communications technologies in conveying ideas

C. people’s preference in selecting communications technologies

D. people’s honesty levels across a range of communications media

67. Hancock’s research finding surprised those who believed that ________.

A. people are less likely to lie in instant messages

B. people are unlikely to lie in face-to-face interactions

C. people are most likely to lie in email communication

D. people are twice as likely to lie in phone conversations

68. According to the passage, why are people more likely to tell the truth through certain media of communication?

A. They are afraid of leaving behind traces of their lies

B. They believe that honesty is the best policy

C. They tend to be relaxed when using those media

D. They are most practiced at those forms of communication

69. According to Hancock, the telephone is a preferable medium for promoting sales because ________.

A. salesmen can talk directly to their customers

B. salesmen may feel less restrained to exaggerate

C. salesmen can impress customers as being trustworthy

D. salesmen may pass on instant messages effectively

70. It can be inferred from the passage that ________.

A. honesty should be encouraged in interpersonal communications

B. more employers will use emails to communicate with their employees

C. email is now the dominant medium of communication within a company

D. suitable media should be chosen for different communication purposes

Why are you so anxious? It isn’t your problem              .

A. on purpose       B. in all              C. on time             D. after all