Eating Chocolate Can Make You Smarter

     Chocolate lovers know that eating chocolate makes them happy．Now it turns out that eating chocolate may also make them smarter．

     Dr．Bryan Raudenbush recently made a study to see how eating chocolate affects people’s brains．The U．S．researcher knew that chocolate contained several stimulants(兴奋剂)．But he wasn’t sure how those stimulants actually affected chocolate eaters．

    To find out，Raudenbush had a group of volunteers eat 85grams of milk chocolate．He asked another group to eat no chocolate at all．After l 5 minutes，he tested their memory and their ability to solve problems．

    The group that ate milk chocolate had higher scores．They were able to remember more words and pictures than the group that did not eat chocolate．Raudenbush concluded(得出结论) that the stimulants in chocolate increased mental(精神的)alertness(灵敏度)．

    Of course，eating chocolate doesn’t guarantee(保证)you’ll pass every test．You’ll still need to study hard!

1．Many people like eating chocolate because it can make them      ．

A．annoyed           B．unhappy          C．pleased           D．funny

2．The American researcher knew that       ．

  A．chocolate was a kind of stimulant

  B．there were some stimulants in chocolate

  C．chocolate contained many objects in it but not stimulants

  D．many people loved to eat it because of its stimulants

3．Why did Raudenbush ask a group of volunteers to eat chocolate?

  A．Because he thought it was exciting．

  B．Because he wasn’t sure how many people eat chocolate．

   C．Because his American friend asked him to do so．

   D．Because he wanted to know how stimulants affected the eaters of chocolate．

4．The result of the test is that       ．

   A．the stimulants in chocolate increased mental alertness．

   B．the group that ate chocolate had higher scores than the group that didn't eat

   C．one group ate chocolate but another didn’t eat it．

   D．Nothing happened to the groups．

5．If you want to pass every exam，        ．

   A．you will just eat enough chocolate

   B．you will ask the expert to have a chocolate test

   C．you will still need to study hard

D．you needn’t go to school

Since the 1970s, scientists have been searching for ways to link the brain with computers. Brain­computer interface (BCI) technology could help people with disabilities send commands to machines.

Recently, two researchers, Jose Millan and Michele Tavella from the Federal Polytechnic School in Lausanne, Switzerland, demonstrated (展示) a small robotic wheelchair directed by a person’s thoughts.

In the laboratory, Tavella operated the wheelchair just by thinking about moving his left or right hand. He could even talk as he watched the vehicle and guided it with his thoughts.

“Our brain has billions of nerve cells. These send signals through the spinal cord (脊髓) to the muscles to give us the ability to move. But spinal cord injuries or other conditions can prevent these weak electrical signals from reaching the muscles.’ Tavella says. “Our system allows disabled people to communicate with external world and also to control devices.”

The researchers designed a special cap for the user. This head cover picks up the signals from the scalp (头皮) and sends them to a computer. The computer interprets the signals and commands the motorized wheelchair. The wheelchair also has two cameras that identify objects in its path. They help the computer react to commands from the brain.

Prof. Millan, the team leader, says scientists keep improving the computer software that interprets brain signals and turns them into simple commands. “The practical possibilities that BCI technology offers to disabled people can be grouped in two categories: communication, and controlling devices. One example is this wheelchair.”

He says his team has set two goals. One is testing with real patients, so as to prove that this is a technology they can benefit from. And the other is to guarantee that they can use the technology over long periods of time.

41. BCI is a technology that can ________.

A. help to update computer systems            B. link the human brain with computers

C. help the disabled to recover                    D. control a person's thoughts

42. How did Tavella operate the wheelchair in the laboratory?

A. By controlling his muscles.                     B. By talking to the machine.

C. By moving his hand.                               D. By using his mind.

43. Which of the following shows the path of the signals described in Paragraph 5?

A. scalp→computer→cap→wheelchair    B. computer→cap→scalp→wheelchair

C. scalp→cap→computer→wheelchair    D. cap→computer→scalp→wheelchair

44. The team will test with real patients to ________.

A. make profits from them                         B. prove the technology useful to them

C. make them live longer                            D. learn about their physical condition

45. Which of the following would be the best title for the text?

A. Switzerland, the BCI Research Center

B. New Findings about How the Human Brain Works

C. BCI Could Mean More Freedom for the Disabled

D. Robotic Vehicles Could Help to Cure Brain Injuries

                             

Many objects that people use each day started with a simple idea. These objects have often changed the way we  46 . Some help us to do a job more   47 . Others fill a need or solve a problem.

In 1858, Lipman had such an  48 . He took out a pencil, a piece of paper,   49 an eraser. Then he began to write. Sometimes he needed to  50  a word. Each time he had to search under his books and papers to   51  the eraser. “ I wish my eraser would stay in one 52 !” he said.

Then Lipman had his simple idea. He   53  a groove(凹槽) in one end of the pencil. He glued(粘牢) the eraser into the groove. Lipman had solved his problem. Later he thought that others might like to have such a pencil. So he sold his  54 .Some pencils with erasers were 55 . His design earned $ 100000.

1.	A．study B．live C．sleep D．walk

 

2.	A．easily B．correctly C．carefully D．normally

 

3.	A．article B．aim C．idea D．action

 

4.	A．so B．and C．but D．as

 

5.	A．spell B．read C．write D．change

 

6.	A．look B．see C．watch D．find

 

7.	A．place B．desk C．book D．hand

 

8.	A．marked B．prepared C．cut D．invented

 

9.	A．books B．pencil C．design D．eraser

 

10.	A．wonderful B．expensive C．colourful D．common

 

Chinese are very generous when it comes to educating their children. Not caring about the  money, parents often send their children to the best schools or even abroad to England, the United States and Australia. They also want their children to take extra-course activities where they will either learn a musical instrument(乐器) or ballet, or other classes which will give them a head in life. The Chinese believe that the more expensive an education is, the better it is. So parents will spend an unreasonable amount of money on education. Even poor couples will buy a computer for their son or daughter. However, what most parents fail to see is that the best early education they can give their children is usually very cheap.
Parents can see that their children are very skilled in some areas while poor in others. What most parents fail to realize though, is that today's children are short of self-respect and self-confidence.
The problem is that parents are only educating their children on how to take multiple-choice tests and how to study well, but parents are not teaching them the most important skills that they need to be confident, happy and clever.
Parents can achieve this by teaching practical skills like cooking, sewing and doing other housework. Teaching a child to cook will improve many of the skills that he will need later in life. Cooking requires patience and time. It is an enjoyable but difficult experience. A good cook always tries to improve his cooking, so he will learn to work hard and finish his job successfully step by step. His result, a well-cooked dinner, will give him much satisfaction and lots of self-confidence.
Some old machines, such as a broken radio or TV set that you give your child to play with will make him curious and arouse(激发) his interest. He will spend hours looking at them, trying to fix them; your child might become an engineer when he grows up. These activities are not only teaching a child to read a book, but rather to think, to use his mind. And that is more important.
【小题1】Most Chinese parents don't realize_______.

A．how much the best education is worth	B．when children should be educated
C．what children really need in later life	D．why school tests don't satisfy children

【小题2】What is the main idea of the last paragraph?

A．Fixing old machines is very important.	B．Interest is necessary for everything.
C．Broken things are useful for children.	D．Using hands helps improve thinking ability.

【小题3】The writer's attitude（看法） to children's education is that

A．the cheaper an education is, the better it is

B．children today should learn different skills

C．practical skills are useful to children's growth

D．school education can't meet parents' expectation.

There are many ways to find a job. It can be as easy as walking into a neighborhood store to look at its announcement(通告) board. Local stores often have areas where people can put small signs telling what kind of service they need or can provide. Such services include caring for children or cleaning houses.

Or, job searchers can look in the newspaper. Local newspapers have employment announcements placed by companies seeking(寻找) workers.

Another popular tool for finding jobs is the Internet. For example, people in four hundred and fifty cities around the world can use the Craigslist(网站名)Web site to buy objects, meet people or find a job. Craigslist says that it receives two million new job listings each month.

Another useful way to find a job is through a college or university. For example, students at the University of Texas in Austin（奥斯丁 (美国得克萨斯州首府)） can go to the Career Exploration Center to get help in finding a job. Of course, looking for a job requires knowing what kind of work you want to do. For example, there is a book called “What Color is Your Parachute (降落伞)?” by Richard Bolles. This book has been helping people choose a career (职业) since it was first published in nineteen seventy.

Some experts(专家) also help people find jobs. Susan W. Miller owns a company called California Career Services in Los Angeles. She says her company helps people find jobs by first helping them understand their strengths, goals and interests. Then she provides them with methods and resources(对策) to help them find the right job.

1.What is the passage mainly about?

A．Finding a job.

B．College students’ part-time jobs.

C．Craigslist Web site.

D．The relation between study and work.

2.It can be learned from the passage that ______.

A．companies often put job information in local shops

B．the Internet is the most popular tool for job hunters in the USA

C．Susan W. Miller’s company is helping people choose careers

D．California Career Services mainly serves university students

3.How many ways of finding a job are mentioned in the passage?

A．Three.

B．Four.

C．Five.

D．Six.