Question

【题目】阅读下面短文，并根据所读内容在文章后表格中的空格里填入一个最恰当的单词。

注意:请将答案写在答题卡上相应题号的横线上。每个空格里只填一个单词。

Many of us have had this experience: we lie down in a bed other than our own, perhaps at a friend’s house or in a hotel room, and find it difficult to fall asleep.

Why does it happen?

A new study shows one reason is what the scientists call “first night effect”. They believe that one side of the brain acts as a “night watch” to warn us about possible dangers. It prevents us from getting to sleep on the first night in a new environment.

For the study, 35 young volunteers were asked to sleep in a sleep lab for several days as researchers watched their brain activities.

According to the researchers, on their first night, the left brain was more active than the right brain and people had a hard time sleeping. However, the left brain activity decreased(降低) as days went by, falling even to the point of complete calm. In this process, the volunteers got better and better sleep experience.

The findings show that the different rhythms(节奏) of the sides of the brain affect our sleep. When the two sides work differently, the balance between them is broken. So the brain can’t relax and is sensitive(敏感的) to anything strange around.

“At some level, the brain is continuing to work, even though you don’t realize it,” US professor Jerome Siegel told Smithsonian Magazine. “If something unusual happens, you can be alert(警惕的)”.

More surprisingly, this is like the way some animals sleep. Whales, dolphins, and many birds can sleep with half of their brain while the other half stays awake, with one eye staying open.

The researchers think that it is the result of evolution(进化) and works to protect us in possibly dangerous environments.

If you have ever had first night effect, researchers advise you to bring your own pillow or sleep in a room similar to your bedroom next time you sleep away from home.

First night effect
People’s possible experience	Many people have 【1】 getting to sleep on the first night in a new environment.
The findings of the study	First night effect forces us to stay awake as one side of the brain is alert to possible dangers. As days go by, people’s sleep experience 【2】 as the left-brain activity falls.
The explanations to the findings	On the first night in a new environment, people’s left brain is more active than the right brain and that 【3】 the balance between them. Our brains continue to work without being realized at night so that we can be sensitive to anything unusual. Some other animals sleep in the similar way, which is thought to be 【4】 by evolution.
【5】 from researchers	Bring your own pillow or sleep in a bedroom that looks like yours.

Answer 1

【答案】

【1】difficulty/trouble

【2】improves

【3】breaks

【4】caused

【5】suggestions/advice

【解析】

文章介绍的是在新的环境中第一晚睡不着的现象，研究人员把这叫做“第一晚效应”，并介绍了研究的结果以及给出如何度过“第一晚效应”的建议。

【1】

根据文中Many of us have had this experience: we lie down in a bed other than our own, perhaps at a friend's house or in a hotel room, and find it difficult to fall asleep.可知，很多人在一个新的环境中的第一晚很难入睡，所以这里应该填“困难”，英语是difficulty/ trouble，故答案为difficulty/trouble。

【2】

根据文中However, the left brain activity decreased(降低) as days went by, falling even to the point of complete calm. In this process, the volunteers got better and better sleep experience.可知，随着时间的推移，左脑活动减弱，甚至下降到完全平静的程度。在这个过程中，志愿者得到了越来越好的睡眠体验。也就是在这个过程中睡眠改善了，故答案为improves。

【3】

根据文中The findings show that the different rhythms(节奏) of the sides of the brain affect our sleep. When the two sides work differently, the balance between them is broken. 研究结果表明，大脑两侧的不同节奏会影响我们的睡眠。当双方的工作方式不同时，他们之间的平衡就被打破了。可知在新环境的第一天晚上，人们的左脑比右脑更活跃，这就是他们之间的平衡被打破了，所以这里缺的是“打破”，英语是break，前句是现在时，所以这里也用现在时，故答案为breaks。

【4】

根据文中More surprisingly, this is like the way some animals sleep. Whales, dolphins, and many birds can sleep with half of their brain while the other half stays awake, with one eye staying open. The researchers think that it is the result of evolution(进化) and works to protect us in possibly dangerous environments. 更令人惊讶的是，这就像一些动物的睡眠方式。鲸鱼、海豚和许多鸟类可以用一半的大脑睡觉，而另一半保持清醒，一只眼睛睁着。研究人员认为这是进化的结果，在可能危险的环境中保护我们。可知这是进化造成的，故答案为caused。

【5】

根据文中If you have ever had first night effect, researchers advise you to bring your own pillow or sleep in a room similar to your bedroom next time you sleep away from home. 如果你曾经有过“第一晚效应”，研究人员建议你下次离家睡觉时带上自己的枕头或睡在与卧室相似的房间里。可知这里是在提出一些建议，所以可以用advice，也可以用suggestions，故答案为suggestions/advice。