1、考研英语（阅读）-试卷 112 及答案解析(总分：60.00，做题时间：90 分钟)一、Reading Comprehensio(总题数：6，分数：60.00)1.Section II Reading Comprehension（分数：10.00）_2.Part ADirections: Read the following four texts. Answer the questions below each text by choosing A, B, C or D.（分数：10.00）_We maintain that in general a focus on positive inf
2、ormation benefits well-being. However, there are probably conditions when a chronic tendency to focus on positive material is maladaptive. One such context, we presumed, is decision-making, especially when options include both positive and negative features. When making decisions, negative features
3、of options often have higher diagnostic value. If a person who is deciding whether to renew a health care plan remembers that she likes her physician but forgets that the plan does not pay for the hip surgery she needs, a suboptimal decision could be made. Corinna and I designed another study with t
4、wo primary aims: to see whether in a decision context older people would review positive features of options more than negative features; and if this was the case, to see if we could eliminate the effect by modifying goals with instructions. Using computer-based decision scenarios, 60 older and 60 y
5、ounger adults were presented with positive, negative, and neutral information about ostensible health care options. Some scenarios presented characteristics of physicians. Others presented features of health care plans. The information was hidden behind colored squares, and participants had to click
6、 on the square to see the information. They were told that positive information was behind white squares and negative information was behind black squares. We then observed how often participants examined the positive information versus the negative information. Later we tested their memory for the
7、information. As we predicted, older adults reviewed and recalled a greater proportion of positive information than did younger adults. Most important, participants in one group were repeatedly reminded to “focus on the facts“ and in this group the preference for positive information disappeared. Hum
8、an need is the basis for virtually all of science. If we rise to the challenge of an aging population by systematically applying science and technology to questions that improve quality of life in adulthood and old age, longer-lived populations will inspire breakthroughs in the social, physical, and
9、 biological sciences that will improve the quality of life at all ages. Longevity science will reveal ways to improve learning from birth to advanced ages and to deter age-related slowing in cognitive processing. Longevity science will draw enormously on insights about individuals “ genomic predispo
10、sitions and the environmental conditions that trigger the onset of disease. Longevity science will help us understand how stress slowly but surely affects health. Most of the challenges of longer-lived populations will require interdisciplinary collaborations. Psychological science must be a part of
11、 this process.（分数：10.00）(1).The author holds that when making decisions, _.（分数：2.00）A.positive information should be focusedB.all options should be carefully diagnosedC.negative information should be consideredD.maladaptive information should be avoided(2).It can be inferred from the text that _.（分数
12、：2.00）A.a suboptimal decision originates from negative informationB.an optimal decision primarily results from positive informationC.negative information is less beneficial than positive informationD.both positive and negative information is needed for decision making(3).The study made by the author
13、 and Corrinna shows that _.（分数：2.00）A.older people focus more on positive informationB.there are more positive features than negative onesC.younger people focus more on negative informationD.it is easier for positive information to be remembered(4).The author argues that longevity science_.（分数：2.00）
14、A.improves the quality of life for both old and youngB.contributes to the improvement of biological functionsC.meets the challenge of longer life in developed nationsD.inspires breakthroughs in various disciplines of sciences(5).According to the text, it is advisable to be aware of_.（分数：2.00）A.the n
15、egative features of optionsB.the dark side of the positive effectC.the challenge of an aging populationD.the typical process of decision makingDNA testing has become something our society relies on very heavily for identification purposes. Everyone has different DNA so it is a unique way to identify
16、 an individual. It is the equivalent of a signature only in a genetic form that can“t be altered or hidden. One of the most common uses of DNA testing is to track down criminals who have left hair, skin, or semen at the scene of a crime. A use for DNA testing that is less familiar to most individual
17、s is for tracking down a person“s heritage. It can be hard to determine a person“s heritage without the help of DNA testing. Each person is classified into one of four main groups when it comes to ancestry. Those groups arc East Asian, Native American, African, or European. Many people have some ide
18、ntifying features or skin colors that help to identify their particular line of ancestry. The trouble is that many people have parents from two different ancestry lines. This makes the diversification very hard to track as you start looking back on generations of mixed ancestry. With ancestry DNA it
19、 is possible to determine the dominant one for that individual. The testing involved in the ancestry DNA process is done with the technology available today. Ancestry DNA testing involves the process of Single Nucleotide Polymorphism so that the dominant ethnic group can be identified. The Single Nu
20、cleotide Polymorphism also tells the percentage of the different ancestry groups that make up the individual“s DNA. While you may wonder why ancestry is so important to some people, the reality is that it does matter. It is interesting to know where your heritage lies and for some people not knowing
21、 gives them a void they really want to have filled. This is more important to them than simply fitting into society because of their race or color. There is plenty of debate surrounding the concept of ancestry DNA. Many experts claim it is not a reliable way to determine one“s heritage. They also be
22、lieve it causes issues with cultural beliefs rather than instilling a sense of their role in society. Others find these claims to be completely ridiculous and place plenty of merit in ancestry DNA test results. There are many good ancestry DNA test locations in the world that do offer individuals th
23、e opportunity to find out where their true heritage lies. Meanwhile an independent validation method still has to be adopted before the scientific field is going to accept it.（分数：10.00）(1).According to the text, DNA testing_.（分数：2.00）A.is a highly accurate, reliable and confidential wayB.can differe
24、ntiate a person from all the other peopleC.is an indispensible tool for verifying one“s signatureD.helps to distinguish a criminal“s hair, skin, or semen(2).A person“s heritage_.（分数：2.00）A.might be discovered with the help of DNA testingB.consists mainly of two types: cultural and nationalC.is somet
25、hing passed down from preceding generationsD.is revealed by the color of his hair, eyes, and complexion(3).The ancestry DNA testing_.（分数：2.00）A.tests your DNA passed down from your parentsB.discovers where your male ancestry line is fromC.gives you percentages of your ancestral makeupD.identifies a
26、person“s cultural and biological feature(4).Ancestry is an important concept in that _.（分数：2.00）A.it helps people to discover their family storiesB.everyone is extremely interested in his heritageC.one can hardly fit into society without knowing itD.the ignorance of one“s heritage may cause emptines
27、s(5).The author argues that ancestry DNA（分数：2.00）A.can scarcely determine a person“s heritageB.justifies the role a person plays in societyC.only gives an estimate of genetic ancestryD.is a disputable concept in scientific fieldWhy do we along with 75 other countriesalternate between standard time a
28、nd daylight time? Although many people believe it has an agricultural provenance, daylight time has always been a policy meant to save energy. As Benjamin Franklin argued, if people moved up their summer schedules by an hour, they could live by “sunshine rather than candles“ in the evenings. Energy
29、conservation was the motivation for daylight time during World Wars I and II and the oil embargo of the 1970s, and it remains so todayeven though there has been little scientific evidence to suggest daylight time actually helps us cut back on electricity use. Recently, however, we were able to condu
30、ct a study in Indiana, where daylight time was instituted statewide only in 2006. Before that year, daylight time was in effect in just a handful of counties. This change of policy offered a unique, natural experiment to measure the overall effect on residential electricity consumption. We could com
31、pare the amount of energy used by households in the late-adopting counties during the two years before they switched to daylight time with the amounts they used during the year afterwardwhile using counties that always practiced daylight time as a control group. We found that daylight time caused a
32、1 percent overall increase in residential electricity use, though the effect varied from month to month. The greatest increase occurred in late summer and early fall, when electricity use rose by 2 percent to 4 percent. Daylight time costs Indiana households an average of $3. 29 a year in higher ele
33、ctricity bills, or about $ 9 million for the whole state. We also calculated the health and other social costs of increased pollution emissions at $1.7 million to $5.5 million per year. What explains this unexpected result? While daylight time reduces demand for household lighting, it increases dema
34、nd for heating in the early spring and late fall(in the mornings)and, even more important, for cooling on summer evenings. Benjamin Franklin was right about candles, in other words, but he did not consider air-conditioners. In regions of the United States where demand for air-conditioning is greater
35、 than in Indiana, this spike in cooling costs is likely to be even greater. Arizona, one of the hottest states, may have it right; it does not practice daylight time. Eliminating daylight time would thus accord with President-elect Barack Obama“s stated goals of conserving resources, saving money, p
36、romoting energy security and reducing climate change. At the very least, we should abandon the notion that we are saving energy while enjoying the extra hour of sunlight on hot summer evenings.（分数：10.00）(1).Daylight time is used in many countries because_.（分数：2.00）A.it is an acceptable alternative f
37、or standard timeB.it is a special convention in agricultural societyC.it is considered an effective way to save energyD.it is a practice to make best use of solar energy(2).According to the text, the motivation for adopting daylight time_.（分数：2.00）A.was the desire to reduce energy consumingB.was muc
38、h stronger in wartime than in peaceC.was inseparable from global economic crisisD.was to slightly cut the impact of oil embargo(3).It was in Indiana that a study was conducted because_ .（分数：2.00）A.only a few counties there adopted daylight time before 2006B.the effect of daylight time on electricity
39、 use could be measuredC.it was the only state in America to adopt daylight time statewideD.the late-adopting counties consumed less electricity than before(4).Daylight time in Indiana failed to cut back on electricity use since_.（分数：2.00）A.its effect varied from month to monthB.it led to slightly hi
40、gher electricity billsC.it increased the use of air-conditionersD.it raised the costs of pollution emissions(5).It is implied in the text that President Barack Obama would_.（分数：2.00）A.live up to his promise to reduce climate changeB.promote the use of daylight time in more statesC.accomplish his sta
41、ted goals at his inaugurationD.give support to the exclusion of daylight timeIn recent years, reformers have sought to improve our failing public education system by tightening and standardizing the measures we use to judge performance. From the numerical requirements of the No Child Left Behind Act
42、 to California“s increased focus on assessment and accountability, there“s been a conscious attempt to use hard data to measure success at every level of the education system. But one group does not have its performance measured this way: teachers. Determining the effectiveness of individual teacher
43、sare they helping our kids learn or not? remains a mostly subjective judgment. Yet there“s no reason why teachers shouldn“t also be evaluated against objective measures of student performance just as are schools, districts and states. Teacher evaluations focus on what they do in the classroomthe inp
44、ut of the learning process. In most school districts, principals show up at prearranged times to observe teachers“ work, and then write their observations. In doing this, they typically use a checklist to guide their assessments. Evaluations usually consist of one or two written observations. This s
45、uperficial and largely subjective approach to evaluating teachers is something of a farce. In many instances, principals can only rate teachers “satisfactory“ or “unsatisfactory“. Multiple unsatisfactory evaluations can lead to dismissal. But faced with the prospect of battling the local teachers un
46、ion to prove that a teacher“s unsatisfactory evaluation is valid, most principals capitulate and rate virtually all teachers as satisfactory. This rubber-stamp routine may make things easier for administrators, but not for the kids. Several researchers, among them Eric Hanushek of the Hoover Institu
47、tion of Stanford University and Jonah Rockoff of Columbia University, have shown that teachers are not interchangeable when it comes to student learning. Given a year with an effective teacherone whose pupils previously showed test-score gainsstudents can advance their learning by a grade level or m
48、ore, according to research done by William Sanders while he was at the University of Tennessee. He also found that under a weak teacher, kids“ progress can stall, and they can fall behind. So why not include student test scoresthe output of the learning process -in teachers “ evaluations? Besides gi
49、ving the evaluation process a much-needed shot of objectivity and rigor, this change could help administrators target assistance for struggling teachers and recognize those who are most effective in the classroom. In its report this month, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger“s nonpartisan committee of education experts agreed. Among other things, it r
