It is not unusual for people to speak two or three languages; they’re known as bilinguals or trilinguals. Speakers of more than three languages are known as polyglots. And when we refer to people who speak many languages, perhaps a dozen or more, we use the term hyper-polyglot.

The most famous hyper-polyglot was Giuseppe Mezzofanti, a 19^th century Italian cardinal, who was said to speak 72 languages. This claim sounds absurd. If you assume each language had 20,000 words, Mezzofanti would have to learn a word a minute, six hours a day, for eleven years—an impossible task. But Mezzofanti was tested by critics, and they were all impressed.

Did Mezzofanti have an extraordinary brain? Or are hyper-polyglots just ordinary people with ordinary brains who manage to do something extraordinary through hard work?

U.S. linguist Stephen Drashen believes that outstanding language learners just work harder at it and then they acquire unusually strong language ability. As an example, he mentions a Hungarian woman who worked as an interpreter during the 20^th century. When she was 86, she could speak 16 languages and was still working on learning new languages. She said she learned them mostly on her own, reading fiction or working through dictionaries or textbooks.

Some researchers argue to the contrary. They believe that there is such a thing as a talent for learning languages. In the 1930s, a German scientist examined parts of the preserved brain of a hyper-polyglot named Emil Krebs, who could speak 60 languages fluently. The scientist found that the area of Krebs’s brain called Broca’s area, which is associated with language, looked different from the Broca’s area in the brains of men who speak only one language. However, we still don’t know if Krebs was born with a brain ready to learn dozens of languages or if his brain adapted to the demands he put on it.

Although it is still not clear whether the ability to learn many languages is in born, there’s no doubt that just about all of us can acquire skills in a second, third, or even fourth language by putting our mind to it.

1.What does the underlined sentence imply?

A．Mezzofanti could remember 360 words a day.

B．Mezzofanti had a special way to learn languages.

C．Mezzofanti’s achievement was ridiculous.

D．Mezzofanti language ability was astonishing.

2.The Hungarian woman became a hyper-polyglot mainly because of her __.

A．good memory                          B．hard work

C．unique brain                           D．learning methods

3.The German scientist’s findings showed that Krebs ___.

A．had an unusual brain

B．was born with great talent

C．had worked hard at languages

D．expected too much of himself

4.The author seems to agree that ___.

A．it is not hard to learn foreign languages

B．hard work plays a part in language learning

C．there is no such thing as a talent for languages

D．hyper-polyglots have an inborn talent for language

It is not unusual for people to speak two or three languages; they’re known as bilinguals or trilinguals. Speakers of more than three languages are known as polyglots. And when we refer to people who speak many languages, perhaps a dozen or more, we use the term hyper-polyglot.
The most famous hyper-polyglot was Giuseppe Mezzofanti, a 19^th century Italian cardinal, who was said to speak 72 languages. This claim sounds absurd. If you assume each language had 20,000 words, Mezzofanti would have to learn a word a minute, six hours a day, for eleven years—an impossible task. But Mezzofanti was tested by critics, and they were all impressed.
Did Mezzofanti have an extraordinary brain? Or are hyper-polyglots just ordinary people with ordinary brains who manage to do something extraordinary through hard work?
U.S. linguist Stephen Drashen believes that outstanding language learners just work harder at it and then they acquire unusually strong language ability. As an example, he mentions a Hungarian woman who worked as an interpreter during the 20^th century. When she was 86, she could speak 16 languages and was still working on learning new languages. She said she learned them mostly on her own, reading fiction or working through dictionaries or textbooks.
Some researchers argue to the contrary. They believe that there is such a thing as a talent for learning languages. In the 1930s, a German scientist examined parts of the preserved brain of a hyper-polyglot named Emil Krebs, who could speak 60 languages fluently. The scientist found that the area of Krebs’s brain called Broca’s area, which is associated with language, looked different from the Broca’s area in the brains of men who speak only one language. However, we still don’t know if Krebs was born with a brain ready to learn dozens of languages or if his brain adapted to the demands he put on it.
Although it is still not clear whether the ability to learn many languages is in born, there’s no doubt that just about all of us can acquire skills in a second, third, or even fourth language by putting our mind to it.
【小题1】What does the underlined sentence imply?

第二节完形填空（20小题；每小题1.5分，满分30分）

      阅读下面短文，从短文后各题所给的四个选项（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。

       I was on my lunch break and had left the office to get something to eat．On the way, I saw a busker （卖艺人）．This wasn't something out of the   36 ; there was always someone   37   enough to busk near the office buildings during lunch．

       As I walked past him, holding some   38   in my hand, I   39   to myself that he was only going to use the money to   40   his addiction to drugs or alcohol．He looked   41   that type —young and ragged．Then I stopped, rather shocked at myself．What was I going to   42   the money on? I only wasgoing to feed my addiction to Coca-Cola or chocolate．I realized I had no   43   to place myself above him   44   because he was busking．

       I   45   and dropped all the coins into his hat and he smiled at me．I watched for a while．As selfish as it sounds, I expected something   46   to come from that moment．I wanted a natural high or even a feeling of happiness,   47   nothing happened．So then I smiled and walked off,   48   why I did things like that just now．It was a waste of money．

       At the   49   of the day as I walked to the train station, I saw the busker packing up．I   50   him pick up the hat and   51   the money into a small plastic bag．Then he walked over to a cafe counter and   52   the entire contents into a tin collecting for a bushfire appeal （募捐）．

       He was busking for charity．I realized just how   53   I had been．I now donate any   54   I have to charity tins and enjoy the feeling of happiness for the rest of the day．You could say I'm now addicted to the feeling of   55 ．

36．A．extraordinary         B．special     C．outstanding          D．ordinary

37．A．handsome    B．smart           C．foolish          D．capable

38．A．food            B．notes           C．checks     D．coins

39．A．thought        B．came           C．left       D．smiled

40．A．give            B．feed            C．catch      D．bring

41．A．like     B．at        C．for  D．after

42．A．cost           B．spend     C．waste           D．pay

43．A．choice         B．power   C．right      D．ability

44．A．even      B．hardly      C．almost     D．just

45．A．stopped        B．walked    C．hurried    D．left

46．A．fewer           B．less        C．more       D．worse

47．A．but        B．or        C．and       D．so

48．A．finding         B．wondering       C．forgetting        D．losing

49．A．beginning      B．end        C．time      D．middle

50．A．heard           B．forced   C．asked           D．watched

51．A．keep      B．take C．empty     D．make

52．A．poured     B．lent   C．entered     D．threw

53．A．brave       B．selfish      C．foolish      D．wise

54．A．clothes     B．food  C．change      D．money

55．A．thanking  B．getting      C．taking       D．Giving