2009年7月高等教育自学考试综合英语(二)试题

　　IV.阅读理解。阅读短文，根据短文的内容从A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出一个正确答案，并将所选答案的字母填在答题纸相应的位置上。错选、多选或未选均无分。(本大题共10小题，每小题2分，共20分)

　　Read the two passages and answer the questions. (20 points)

　　Passage One

　　Researchers have established that when people are mentally engaged (投入的), biochemical (生物化学的) changes occur in the brain that allow it to act more effectively in cognitively(认知的)areas such as attention and memory. This is true regardless of age. People will be alert and receptive if they are faced with information that gets them to think about things they are interested in. And someone with a history of doing more rather than less will go into old age more cognitively sound than someone who has not had an active mind.

　　Many experts are so convinced of the benefits of challenging the brain that they are putting the theory to work in their own lives. “The idea is not necessarily to learn to memorize enormous amounts of information,” says James Fozard, associate director of the National Institute on Aging. “Most of us don’t need that kind of skill. Such specific training is of less interest than being able to maintain mental alertness. ”Fozard and others say they challenge their brains work.

　　Gene Cohen, acting director of the same institute, suggests that people in their old age should engage in mental and physical activities individually as well as in groups. Cohen says that we are frequently advised to keep physically active as we age, but older people need to keep mentally active as well. Those who do are more likely to maintain their intellectual abilities and to be generally happier and better adjusted.“The point is, you need to do both.” Cohen says, “Intellectual activity actually influences brain-cell’s health and size.”

　　41. People who are cognitively healthy are those ______.

　　A. who can remember large amounts of information

　　B. who are highly intelligent

　　C. whose minds are alert and receptive

　　D. who are good at recognizing different sounds

　　42. According to Fozard’s argument, people can make their brains work more efficiently by ____.

　　A. constantly doing memory work

　　B. taking part in various mental activities

　　C. going through specific training

　　D. making frequent adjustments

　　43. The findings of James and other scientists in their work ______.

　　A. remain a theory to be further proved

　　B. have been challenged by many other experts

　　C. have been generally accepted

　　D. are practiced by the researchers themselves

　　44. Older people are generally advised to ______.

　　A. keep fit by going in for physical activities

　　B. keep mentally active by challenging their brains

　　C. maintain mental alertness through specific training

　　D. maintain a balance between individual and group activities

　　45. What is the passage mainly about?

　　A. How biochemical changes occur in the human brain?

　　B. Why people should keep active not only physically but also mentally?

　　C. How intellectual activities influence brain-cell health ?

　　D. Why people should receive special mental training as they age ?

　　Passage Two

　　The food we eat seems to have profound effects on our health. Although science has made enormous steps in making food more fit to eat, it has, at the same time, made many foods unfit to eat. Some research has shown that perhaps eighty percent of all human illnesses are related to diet and forty percent of cancer is related to the diet as well, especially cancer of the colon. Different cultures are prone to contract certain illnesses because of the food that is characteristic in these cultures. That food is related to illness is not a new discovery. In 1945, government researchers realized that nitrates (硝酸钾) and nitrites(亚硝酸盐), commonly used to preserve color in meats, and other food additives, caused cancer. Yet, these carcinogenic additives remain in our food, and it becomes more difficult all the time to know which things on the packaging labels of processed food are helpful or harmful. The additives which we eat are not all so direct. Farmers often give penicillin to beef and poultry and because of this, penicillin has been found in the milk of treated cows. Sometimes similar drugs are administered(given) to animals not for medicinal purposes, but for financial reasons. The farmers are simply trying to fatten the animals in order to obtain a higher price on the market. Although the Food and Drug Administration has tried repeatedly to control these procedures, the practices continue.

　　46. How has science done a disservice (伤害) to mankind? ______.

　　A. Because of science, disease caused by contaminated food has been virtually done away with

　　B. It has caused a lack of information, concerning the value of food

　　C. As a result of scientific intervention, some potentially harmful substances have been added to our food

　　D. The scientists have preserved the color of meats, but not of vegetables

　　47. What are nitrates used for? ______.

　　A. They preserve flavor in packaged foods

　　B. They preserve the color of meats

　　C. They are the objects of research

　　D. They cause the animals to become fatter

　　48. What does FDA mean as an organization? ______.

　　A. Food Direct Additives

　　B. Final Difficult Analysis

　　C. Food and Drug Administration

　　D. Federal Dairy Additives

　　49. The word carcinogenic means most nearly the same as ______.

　　A. trouble-making

　　B. color-retaining

　　C. money-making

　　D. cancer-causing

　　50. Which of the following statements is not true? ______.

　　A. Drugs are always given to animals for medical reasons.

　　B. Some of the additives in our food are added to the food itself and some are given to the living　animals.

　　C. Researchers have known about the potential hazards of food additives for over thirty-five　years.

　　D. Food may cause forty percent of cancer in the world.