单项选择
单项选择
In meditation (冥想), people sit quietly and focus their attention on their breath. As they breathe in and out, they attend to their feelings. As thoughts go through their minds, they let them go. Breathe. Let go. Breathe. Let go.
According to a recent study at the Insight Meditation Society in Barre, Massachusetts, three months of training in this kind of meditation causes a marked change in how the brain allocates (分配) attention. It appears that the ability to let go thoughts that come into mind frees the brain to attend to more rapidly changing things and events in the outside world. Expert mediators are better than other people at catching such fast-changing stimuli(刺激), like facial-expressions.
The study provides evidence for changes in the workings of the brain with mental training. People can learn and improve abilities of all sorts with practice, everything from driving to playing the piano. The study has shown that meditation is good for the brain. It appears to reduce pressure and promote a sense of well-being.
In an experiment, 17 volunteers with no meditation experience in the experimental group spent three months meditating 10 to 12 hours a day. A control group also with no meditation experience meditated for 20 minutes a day over the same period. Both groups were then given the tests with two numbers in a group of letters. As both groups looked for the numbers, their brain activity was recorded.
Everyone could catch the first number. But the brain recordings showed that the less experienced mediators tended to grasp the first number and hang onto it, so they missed the second number. Those with more experience gave less attention to the first number, as if letting it go, which led to an increased ability to grasp the second number. This shows that attention can change with practice.
Just ask Daniel Levision, who meditated for three months as part of the study. "I am a much better listener," he said, "I do not get lost in my own personal reaction to what people are saying. /
The study proves that ______.
A:meditation improves one’s health B:brain activity can be recorded C:human attention can be trained D:mediators have a good sense of hearing
Can earthquake be predicted Scientists are (1) programs to predict where and when an earthquake will occur. They hope to (2) an early warning system that can be used to (3) earth-quakes so that lives can be saved. The scientists who are (4) this work is called seismologists. The word seismologist is (5) from the Greek word seismos, meaning earthquake.
Earthquakes are the most dangerous and (6) of all natural events. They occur in many parts of the world. Giant earthquakes have been (7) in Iran, China, India, Alaska, and so on. Two of the biggest earthquakes that were ever recorded (8) in China and Alaska, which measured about 8.5 on the Richter Scale. The Richter Scale was (9) by Charles Richter in 1935, and compares the energy (10) of earthquakes. An earthquake that measures a 2 on tile scale can be felt but causes (11) damage. One that measures 4.5 on the scale can cause slight damage, and an earth- quake that has a reading of over 7 can cause (12) damage. It is important to note that a reading of 4 indicates a quake ten times as strong as one with a reading of 3.
How do earthquakes occur Earthquakes are caused by the shifting of rocks along cracks, or faults, in the earth’s crust. The (13) is produced when rocks near each other are pulled (14) different directions.
Earthquake (15) is in its infancy. Scientists have only a (16) understanding of the physical (17) that cause earthquakes. Much more research has to be done. New and more up-to-date (18) have to be found for collecting earthquake data and analyzing it. (19) , seismologists have had some success in predicting earthquakes. Several small earthquakes were predicted. While this is a small start, it is (20) a beginning.
A:recorded B:occurred C:predicted D:measured
Alan "Ace" Greenberg chose his nickname to improve his chances with girls at the University of Missouri. But it is an apt (1) of his wading skills on Wall Street. This week, as the 73-year-old (2) down (3) chairman of Bear Stearns, the investment bank where he has worked since 1949 is in a high. It (4) an increase in post-tax profits in the second quarter of 43% on a year earlier, (5) a time when many of its Wall Street rivals have (6) . On June 26th Merrill Lynch (7) a warning that its profits in the second quarter would fall by half, far (8) of expectations. Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley have also reported lower profits.
Strange that this surprised. (9) Alan Greenspan’s frenetic cuts (10) interest rates, times are good for underwriters and waders of bonds, core activities for Bear Stearns and Lehman Brothers, (11) also recorded a sharp increase in profits. It has been a terrible (12) for equity underwriters and for advisers on the small amounts of mergers and acquisitions (M＆A) this year.
Merrill, Goldman and Morgan Stanley are three of the investment banks that gained (13) during the boom in equity and M＆A business, and they are now (14) the most. Of the three, Merrill is weakest in bonds. It cut (15) its fixed-income activities after the collapse of Lung-Term Capital Management (LTCM) in 1998. As it happens, both Bear Stearns and Lehman have long been criticised for their weakness in equities.
Mr Greenberg is famous for worrying about even the price of a paper-clip at Bear Stearns. This used to seem terribly (16) ,but these days other Wall Street firms are (17) about costs. Lay-offs are (18) though not yet alarmingly-not least, because banks saw how Merrill Lynch lost (19) when the markets rebounded quickly after the LTCM crisis. Still, if few (20) of improvement show soon, expect real blood-letting on Wall Street.
A:recorded B:logged C:chronicled D:noted
Alan "Ace" Greenberg chose his nickname to improve his chances with girls at the University of Missouri. But it is an apt (1) of his wading skills on Wall Street. This week, as the 73-year-old (2) down (3) chairman of Bear Stearns, the investment bank where he has worked since 1949 is in a high. It (4) an increase in post-tax profits in the second quarter of 43% on a year earlier, (5) a time when many of its Wall Street rivals have (6) . On June 26th Merrill Lynch (7) a warning that its profits in the second quarter would fall by half, far (8) of expectations. Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley have also reported lower profits.
Strange that this surprised. (9) Alan Greenspan’s frenetic cuts (10) interest rates, times are good for underwriters and waders of bonds, core activities for Bear Stearns and Lehman Brothers, (11) also recorded a sharp increase in profits. It has been a terrible (12) for equity underwriters and for advisers on the small amounts of mergers and acquisitions (M＆A) this year.
Merrill, Goldman and Morgan Stanley are three of the investment banks that gained (13) during the boom in equity and M＆A business, and they are now (14) the most. Of the three, Merrill is weakest in bonds. It cut (15) its fixed-income activities after the collapse of Lung-Term Capital Management (LTCM) in 1998. As it happens, both Bear Stearns and Lehman have long been criticised for their weakness in equities.
Mr Greenberg is famous for worrying about even the price of a paper-clip at Bear Stearns. This used to seem terribly (16) ,but these days other Wall Street firms are (17) about costs. Lay-offs are (18) though not yet alarmingly-not least, because banks saw how Merrill Lynch lost (19) when the markets rebounded quickly after the LTCM crisis. Still, if few (20) of improvement show soon, expect real blood-letting on Wall Street
A:recorded B:logged C:chronicled D:noted
The decision of the New York Philharmonic to hire Alan Gilbert as its next music director has been the talk of the classical-music world ever since the sudden announcement of his appointment in 2009. For the most part, the response has been favorable, to say the least. “Hooray! At last!” wrote Anthony Tommasini, a sober-sided classical-music critic.
One of the reasons why the appointment came as such a surprise, however, is that Gilbert is comparatively little known. Even Tommasini, who had advocated Gilbert’s appointment in the Times, calls him “an unpretentious musician with no air of the formidable conductor about him.” As a description of the next music director of an orchestra that has hitherto been led by musicians like Gustav Mahler and Pierre Boulez, that seems likely to have struck at least some Times readers as faint praise.
For my part, I have no idea whether Gilbert is a great conductor or even a good one. To be sure, he performs an impressive variety of interesting compositions, but it is not necessary for me to visit Avery Fisher Hall, or anywhere else, to hear interesting orchestral music. All I have to do is to go to my CD shelf, or boot up my computer and download still more recorded music from iTunes.
Devoted concertgoers who reply that recordings are no substitute for live performance are missing the point. For the time, attention, and money of the art-loving public, classical instrumentalists must compete not only with opera houses, dance troupes, theater companies, and museums, but also with the recorded performances of the great classical musicians of the 20th century. There recordings are cheap, available everywhere, and very often much higher in artistic quality than today’s live performances; moreover, they can be “consumed” at a time and place of the listener’s choosing. The widespread availability of such recordings has thus brought about a crisis in the institution of the traditional classical concert.
One possible response is for classical performers to program attractive new music that is not yet available on record. Gilbert’s own interest in new music has been widely noted: Alex Ross, a classical-music critic, has described him as a man who is capable of turning the Philharmonic into “a markedly different, more vibrant organization.” But what will be the nature of that difference Merely expanding the orchestra’s repertoire will not be enough. If Gilbert and the Philharmonic are to succeed, they must first change the relationship between America’s oldest orchestra and the new audience it hops to attract.
The author believes that the devoted concertgoers
A:ignore the expenses of live performances. B:reject most kinds of recorded performances. C:exaggerate the variety of live performances. D:overestimate the value of live performances.
Text 1 The decision of the New York Philharmonic to hire Alan Gilbert as its next music director has been the talk of the classical-music world ever since the sudden announcement of his appointment in 2009. For the most part, the response has been favorable, to say the least. “Hooray! At last!” wrote Anthony Tommasini, a sober-sided classical-music critic。 One of the reasons why the appointment came as such a surprise, however, is that Gilbert is comparatively little known. Even Tommasini, who had advocated Gilbert’s appointment in the Times, calls him “an unpretentious musician with no air of the formidable conductor about him。” As a description of the next music director of an orchestra that has hitherto been led by musicians like Gustav Mahler and Pierre Boulez, that seems likely to have struck at least some Times readers as faint praise。 For my part, I have no idea whether Gilbert is a great conductor or even a good one. To be sure, he performs an impressive variety of interesting compositions, but it is not necessary for me to visit Avery Fisher Hall, or anywhere else, to hear interesting orchestral music. All I have to do is to go to my CD shelf, or boot up my computer and download still more recorded music from iTunes。 Devoted concertgoers who reply that recordings are no substitute for live performance are missing the point. For the time, attention, and money of the art-loving public, classical instrumentalists must compete not only with opera houses, dance troupes, theater companies, and museums, but also with the recorded performances of the great classical musicians of the 20th century. There recordings are cheap, available everywhere, and very often much higher in artistic quality than today’s live performances; moreover, they can be “consumed” at a time and place of the listener’s choosing. The widespread availability of such recordings has thus brought about a crisis in the institution of the traditional classical concert。 One possible response is for classical performers to program attractive new music that is not yet available on record. Gilbert’s own interest in new music has been widely noted: Alex Ross, a classical-music critic, has described him as a man who is capable of turning the Philharmonic into “a markedly different, more vibrant organization。” But what will be the nature of that difference Merely expanding the orchestra’s repertoire will not be enough. If Gilbert and the Philharmonic are to succeed, they must first change the relationship between America’s oldest orchestra and the new audience it hops to attract。 The author believes that the devoted concertgoers
A:ignore the expenses of live performances。 B:reject most kinds of recorded performances。 C:exaggerate the variety of live performances。 D:overestimate the value of live performances。
According to the forecast the lowest recorded temperature was ______.
A:5l degrees B:65 degrees C:in the upper 60s D:in the mid to upper 70s
According to the forecast the lowest recorded temperature was ______.
A:51 degrees B:65 degrees C:in the upper 60s D:in the mid to upper 70s
In meditation (冥想), people sit quietly and focus their attention on their breath. As they breathe in and out, they attend to their feelings. As thoughts go through their minds, they let them go. Breathe. Let go. Breathe. Let go.
According to a recent study at the Insight Meditation Society in Barre, Massachusetts, three months of training in this kind of meditation causes a marked change in how the brain allocates (分配) attention. It appears that the ability to let go thoughts that come into mind frees the brain to attend to more rapidly changing things and events in the outside world. Expert mediators are better than other people at catching such fast-changing stimuli(刺激), like facial-expressions.
The study provides evidence for changes in the workings of the brain with mental training. People can learn and improve abilities of all sorts with practice, everything from driving to playing the piano. The study has shown that meditation is good for the brain. It appears to reduce pressure and promote a sense of well-being.
In an experiment, 17 volunteers with no meditation experience in the experimental group spent three months meditating 10 to 12 hours a day. A control group also with no meditation experience meditated for 20 minutes a day over the same period. Both groups were then given the tests with two numbers in a group of letters. As both groups looked for the numbers, their brain activity was recorded.
Everyone could catch the first number. But the brain recordings showed that the less experienced mediators tended to grasp the first number and hang onto it, so they missed the second number. Those with more experience gave less attention to the first number, as if letting it go, which led to an increased ability to grasp the second number. This shows that attention can change with practice.
Just ask Daniel Levision, who meditated for three months as part of the study. "I am a much better listener," he said, "I do not get lost in my own personal reaction to what people are saying. /
The study proves that ______.
A:meditation improves one’s health B:brain activity can be recorded C:human attention can be trained D:mediators have a good sense of hearing
