2008年高考英语复习指导 强化训练阅读理解

C

The classical study of family size and IQ was conducted in the Netherlands. It was based on the military(军事)examinations of more than 386,000 Dutchmen. Researchers found that the brightest subjects came from the smallest families and had few, if any, brothers and sisters when they were born. Thus the firstborn child in a family of two was usually brighter than the last child in a family.

The effects of family size on intelligence may be explained by what a house full of children does to the home environment. It increases the amount of time a child spends with other children and decreases the amount of parental attention he or she receives. For example, a parent with one restless child is likely to sit and play with the child. The same parent with two or three restless children is more likely to ask them to play with each other. Some psychologists say that when a child interacts(交往)with an adult alone, the child learns more and therefore intelligence is increased. Researchers have also found that parents often expect more from their firstborn, which motivates such children to seek a higher standard.

Not all psychologists agree that firstborns tend to be more intelligent. They say that the data need to be examined more closely for other possible explanations. For example, in industrialized nations most large families come from lower socio – economic backgrounds. Thus environment, not family size or birth order, may be influencing intelligence. On the other hand, there may be genetic variations(基因变异)within families that also explain the cause of differences.

If firstborns have advantages in the area of intelligence, research has also shown that they may be more conforming(墨守成规)and have poorer social skills than their younger siblings (brothers and / or sisters). Although more research needs to be done in this area, it is clear that such factors as birth order, the order in which boys and girls are born into a family, the number of years that separate siblings probably have an effect on the development of intelligence, personality, and social relationships.

1.The underlined word “subjects” in the 1st paragraph means .

A.branches of knowledge

B.persons chosen to be studied in experiments

C.citizens of a country

D.things talked about in a conversation, discussion or look

2.According to the research, usually the elder in a two-child family is .

A.cleverer than the younger

B.no cleverer than the younger

C.less clever than the younger

D.as clever as the younger

3.Why are firstborns encouraged to seek a higher standard?

A.They are more likely to obey others.

B.Their parents spend less time with other children.

C.They are more conforming.

D.Their parents expect more from them.

4.The best title for this passage would be .

A.Family Size and IQ

B.Boys Cleverer Than Girls?

C.The Development of intelligence D.Factors Influencing IQ

参考答案

A：1.C 2.B 3.C 4.A

B：1.A 2.C 3.B 4.D

C：1.B 2.A 3.D 4.A

阅读下面短文，掌握其大意，其后从1～20各题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出最佳选项。

I always remembered the first time I took part in an English composition competition. “Right! Dean would be the 1 of our class to participate in the English composition competition,” my classmates said.

I was too 2 to speak when hearing what my classmates said, but I was also a bit delighted. In order not to 3 short of my classmates’ 4 , I trained myself very hard for the hope of being the winner of the competition, which would 5 a month later. I 6 a lot of vocabulary, sentence structures and grammar rules and read many good or 7 articles. Not having I 8 pretty well, the day came. Every candidate 9 me looked so well – prepared and 10 . “Only 1.5 hours. Start,” a supervisor suddenly said. Seeing the 11 “What do most teenagers concern nowadays?” I was 12 and got writer’s block. What’s worse, other candidates had begun writing. Moments later, I 13 myself, took a deep breath, and began brainstorming ideas 14 the topic. I quickly wrote down the composition structure, central 15 , and other necessary elements. As the finishing time was 16 , I tried my best to accelerate my writing. Unfortunately, 17 my failure of time management, I left my composition 18 . My final draft looked like a robot whose legs were broken.

The result came out two weeks later. To my 19 , I got the second prize! All my classmates cheered for me. This encouraged me a lot. Although I was not the first prize winner, I could still 20 the scent of pride and happiness spreading around me.

1. A. player B. monitor

C. representative D. actor

2. A. proud B. excited

C. anxious D. surprised

3. A. get B. become

C. lose D. fall

4. A. promises B. expectations

C. dreams D. ideas

5. A. set down B. go on

C. take place D. hold up

6. A. memorized B. copied

C. recalled D. invented

7. A. well-known B. out of date

C. scientific D. academic

8. A. remembered B. prepared

C. started D. completed

9. A. besides B. except

C. with D. against

10. A. easy B. healthy

C. interested D. unconfident

11. A. problem B. idea

C. topic D. paper

12. A. nervous B. ready

C. confident D. hopeful

13. A. persuaded B. convinced

C. encouraged D. calmed

14. A. with B. towards

C. at D. for

15. A. intention B. detail

C. theme D. explanation

16. A. approaching B. accessing

C. leaving D. going

17. A. for fear of B. due to

C. in spite of D. in case of

18. A. blank B. amazing

C. incomplete D. incorrect

19. A. disappointment B. joy

C. expectation D. surprise

20. A. smell B. touch

C. sense D. realize

参考答案

1.C 2.D 3.D 4. B 5.C

6.A 7.A 8.B 9.B 10.A

11.C 12.A 13.D 14.D 15.C

16.A 17.B 18.C 19.D 20.C

完形填空

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