Being able to multitask—doing several things ...

Being able to multitask---doing several things at the same time---is considered a welcome skill by most people. But if we consider the situation of the young people aged from eight to eighteen, we should think again.

What we often see nowadays is that young people juggle an ever larger number of electronic devices as they study. While working, they also surf on the Internet, send out emails, answer the telephone and listen to music on their iPods. In a sense, they are spending a significant amount of time in fruitless efforts as they multitask.

Multitasking is even changing the relationship between family members. As young people give so much attention to their own worlds, they seem to have no time to spend with the other people around them. They can no longer greet family members when they enter the house, nor can they eat at the family table.

Multitasking also affects young people’s performance at university and in the workplace. When asked about their opinion of the effect of modern gadgets on their performance of tasks, many young people gave a positive response. However, the response from the worlds of education and business was not quite as positive.

Educators feel that multitasking by children has a serious effect on later development of study skills. They believe that many college students now need help to improve their study skills. Similarly, employers feel that young people entering the job market need to be taught all over again, as modern gadgets have made it unnecessary for them to learn special skills to do their work.

1.What does the underlined word “juggle” in Paragraph 2 most probably mean?

2.In Paragraph 3, the author points out that  ________.

3.What is the main idea of the last paragraph?

4.The author develops the passage mainly by ________.

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

Being able to multitask—doing several things at the same time—is considered a welcome skill by most people. But if we consider the situation of the young people aged from eight to eighteen, we should think again.

What we often see nowadays is that young people juggle an ever larger number of electronic devices(电子产品)as they study. While working, they also surf on the Internet, send out emails, answer the telephone and listen to music on their iPods. In a sense, they are spending a significant amount of time in fruitless efforts as they multitask.

Multitasking is even changing the relationship between family members. As young people around them. They can no longer greet family members when they enter the house, nor can they cat at the family table.

Multitasking also affects young people’s performance at university and in the workplace. When asked about their opinion of the effect of modern gadgets(器具)on their performance of tasks, many young people gave a positive response(反应). However, the response from the worlds of education and business was not quite as positive. Educators feel that multitasking by children has a serious effect on later development of study skills. They believe that many college students now need help to improve their study skills. Similarly, employers feel that young people entering the job market need to be taught all over again, as modern gadgets have made it unnecessary for them to learn special skills to do their work.

1.What does the underlined word “juggle” in Paragraph 2 most probably mean?

A. Want to buy

B. Take the place of.

C. Use at the same time

D. Seek for information from.

2.In Paragraph 3, the author points out that ________.

A. family members do not cat at the family table

B. family member do not greet each other

C. young people live happily in their families

D. young people seldom talk with their family members

3.What is the main idea of the last paragraph?

A. Multitasking is harmful to young people’s development.

B. Young people benefit a lot from modern gadgets

C. Multitasking is an important skill to young people.

D. Young people must learn skills for future jobs.

4.The author develops the passage mainly by ________.

A. providing typical examples

B. following the natural time order

C. comparing opinions from different fields

D. presenting a cause and analyzing its effects

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

C

Being able to multitask—doing several things at the same time—is considered a welcome skill by most people. But if we consider the situation of the young people aged from eight to eighteen, we should think again.

What we often see nowadays is that young people juggle an ever larger number of electronic devices(电子产品)as they study. While working, they also surf on the Internet, send out emails, answer the telephone and listen to music on their iPods. In a sense, they are spending a significant amount of time in fruitless efforts as they multitask.

Multitasking is even changing the relationship between family members. As young people around them. They can no longer greet family members when they enter the house, nor can they cat at the family table.

Multitasking also affects young people’s performance at university and in the workplace. When asked about their opinion of the effect of modern gadgets(器具)on their performance of tasks, many young people gave a positive response(反应). However, the response from the worlds of education and business was not quite as positive. Educators feel that multitasking by children has a serious effect on later development of study skills. They believe that many college students now need help to improve their study skills. Similarly, employers feel that young people entering the job market need to be taught all over again, as modern gadgets have made it unnecessary for them to learn special skills to do their work.

1.What does the underlined word “juggle” in Paragraph 2 most probably mean?

2.In Paragraph 3, the author points out that ________.

3.What is the main idea of the last paragraph?

4.The author develops the passage mainly by ________.

高三英语阅读理解简单题查看答案及解析

Multitasking

People who multitask all the time may be the worst at doing two things at once, a new research suggests. The findings, based on performances and self-evaluation by about 275 college students, indicate that many people multitask not out of a desire to increase productivity, but because they are easily distracted (分心) and can’t focus on one activity. And “those people turn out to be the worst at handling different things,” said David Sanbonmatsu, a psychologist at the University of Utah.

Sanbonmatsu and his colleagues gave the students a set of tests and asked them to report how often they multitasked, how good they thought they were at it, and how sensation-seeking (寻求刺激) or imperative (冲动) they were. They then evaluated the participants’ multitasking ability with a tricky mental task that required the students to do simple mathematical calculations while remembering a set of letters.

Not surprisingly, the scientists said, most people thought they were better than average at multitasking, and those who thought they were better at it were more likely to report using a cellphone while driving or viewing multiple kinds of media at once. But those who frequently deal with many things at the same time were found to perform the worst at the actual multitasking test. They also were more likely to admit to sensation-seeking and impulsive behavior, which connects with how easily people get bored and distracted.

“People multitask not because it’s going to lead to greater productivity, but because they’re distractible, and they get sucked into things that are not as important.” Sanbonmatsu said.

Adam Gazzaley, a researcher at the University of California, San Francisco, who was not a member of the research group, said one limitation of the study was that it couldn’t find out whether people who start out less focused   toward multitasking or whether people’s recognizing and understanding abilities change as a result of multitasking.

The findings do suggest, however, why the sensation-seeker who multitask the most may enjoy risky distracted driving. “People who are multitasking are generally less sensitive to risky situations.” said Paul Atchley, another researcher not in the group. “This may partly explain why people go in for these situations even though they’re dangerous.”

1. The research led by Sanbonmatsu indicates that people who multitask________.

A．seek high productivity constantly

B．prefer handling different things when getting bored

C．are more focused when doing many things at a time

D．have the poorest results in doing various things at the same time

2.When Sanbonmatsu and his colleagues conducted their research, they.

A．assessed the multitasking ability of the students

B．evaluated the academic achievements of the students

C．analyzed the effects of the participants’ tricky mental tasks

D．measured the changes of the students’ understanding ability

3.According to Sanbonmatsu, people multitask because of their_.

A．limited power in calculation               B．interests in doing things differently

C．inability to concentrate on one task          D．impulsive desire to try new things

4. From the last paragraph, we can learn that multitaskers usually____  .

A．drive very skillfully

B．go in for different tasks

C．fail to react quickly to potential dangers

D．refuse to explain the reasons for their behavior

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

People who multitask all the time may be the worst at doing two things at once, a new research suggests. The findings, based on performances and self-evaluation by about 275 college students, indicate that many people multitask not out of a desire to increase productivity, but because they are easily distracted and can’t focus on one activity. And “those people turn out to be the worst at handling different things,” said David Sanbonmatsu, a psychologist at the University of Utah.

Sanbonmatsu and his colleagues gave the students a set of tests and asked them to report how often they multitasked, how good they thought they were at it, and how sensation-seeking (寻求刺激) or imperative (冲动) they were. They then evaluated the participants’ multitasking ability with a tricky mental task that required the students to do simple mathematical calculations while remembering a set of letters.

Not surprisingly, the scientists said, most people thought they were better than average at multitasking, and those who thought they were better at it were more likely to report using a cellphone while driving or viewing multiple kinds of media at once. But those who frequently deal with many things at the same time were found to perform the worst at the actual multitasking test. They also were more likely to admit to sensation-seeking and impulsive behavior, which connects with how easily people get bored and distracted.

“People multitask not because it’s going to lead to greater productivity, but because they’re distractible, and they get sucked into things that are not as important.” Sanbonmatsu said.

Adam Gazzaley, a researcher at the University of California, San Francisco, who was not a member of the research group, said one limitation of the study was that it couldn’t find out whether people who start out less focused tend toward multitasking or whether people’s recognizing and understanding abilities change as a result of multitasking.

The findings do suggest, however, why the sensation-seeker who multitask the most may enjoy risky distracted driving. “People who are multitasking are generally less sensitive to risky situations.” said Paul Atchley, another researcher not in the group. “This may partly explain why people go in for these situations even though they’re dangerous.”

1.The research led by Sanbonmatsu indicates that people who multitask __________.

A. seek high productivity constantly

B. prefer handling different things when getting bored

C. are more focused when doing many things at a time

D. have the poorest results in doing various things at the same time

2.When Sanbonmatsu and his colleagues conducted their research, they __________.

A. assessed the multitasking ability of the students

B. evaluated the academic achievements of the students

C. analyzed the effects of the participants’ tricky mental tasks

D. measured the changes of the students’ understanding ability

3.According to Sanbonmatsu, people multitask because of their __________.

A. limited power in calculation

B. interests in doing things differently

C. inability to concentrate on one task

D. impulsive desire to try new things

4.From the last paragraph, we can learn that multitaskers usually __________.

A. drive very skillfully

B. go in for different tasks

C. fail to react quickly to potential dangers

D. refuse to explain the reasons for their behavior

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

(2013·高考北京卷，D)People who multitask all the time may be the worst at doing two things at once，a new research suggests.The findings，based on performances and self­evaluations by about 275 college students，indicate that many people multitask not out of a desire to increase productivity，but because they are easily distracted (分心) and can’t focus on one activity.And “those people turn out to be the worst at handling different things，”said David Sanbonmatsu，a psychologist at the University of Utah.

Sanbonmatsu and his colleagues gave the students a set of tests and asked them to report how often they multitasked，how good they thought they were at it，and how sensation­seeking (寻求刺激) or impulsive (冲动)they were.They then evaluated the participants’multitasking ability with a tricky mental task that required the students to do simple mathematical calculations while remembering a set of letters.

Not surprisingly，the scientists said，most people thought they were better than average at multitasking，and those who thought they were better at it were more likely to report using a cellphone while driving or viewing multiple kinds of media at once.But those who frequently deal with many things at the same time were found to perform the worst at the actual multitasking test.They also were more likely to admit to sensation­seeking and impulsive behavior，which connects with how easily people get bored and distracted.

“People multitask not because it’s going to lead to greater productivity，but because they’re distractible，and they get sucked into things that are not as important，”Sanbonmatsu said.

Adam Gazzaley，a researcher at the University of California，San Francisco，who was not a member of the research group，said one limitation of the study was that it couldn’t find out whether people who start out less focused tend toward multitasking or whether people’s recognizing and understanding abilities change as a result of multitasking.

The findings do suggest，however，why the sensation­seekers who multitask the most may enjoy risky distracted driving.“People who are multitasking are generally less sensitive to risky situations.”said Paul Atchley，another researcher not in the group.“This may partly explain why people go in for these situations even though they’re dangerous.”

1.The research led by Sanbonmatsu indicates that people who multitask________.

A．seek high productivity constantly

B．prefer handling different things when getting bored

C．are more focused when doing many things at a time

D．have the poorest results in doing various things at the same time

2.When Sanbonmatsu and his colleagues conducted their research，they________.

A．assessed the multitasking ability of the students

B．evaluated the academic achievements of the students

C．analyzed the effects of the participants’tricky mental

tasks

D．measured the changes of the students’understanding ability

3.According to Sanbonmatsu，people multitask because of their________.

A．limited power in calculation

B．interests in doing things differently

C．inability to concentrate on one task

D．impulsive desire to try new things

4.From the last paragraph，we can learn that multitaskers usually________.

A．drive very skillfully

B．go in for difficult tasks

C．fail to react quickly to potential dangers

D．refuse to explain the reasons for their behavior

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

The term “multitasking” originally referred to a computer's ability to carry out several tasks at one time. For many people, multitasking has become a way of life and even a key to success. In fact, some excellent mental aerobic exercises (大脑训练) involve engaging the brain in two or more challenging activities at a time. Although checking e-mail while talking on a phone and reading the newspaper may be second nature for some people, many times multitasking can make us less productive, rather than more. And studies show that too much multitasking can lead to increased stress, anxiety and memory loss.

In order to multitask, the brain uses an area known as the prefrontal cortex (前额叶脑皮层). Brain scans of volunteers performing multiple tasks together show that as they shift from task to task, this front part of the brain actually takes a moment of rest between tasks. You may have experienced a prefrontal cortex “moment of rest” yourself if you've ever dialed (拨电话) a phone number and suddenly forgotten who you called when the line is answered. What probably occurred is that between the dialing and the answering, your mind shifted to another thought or task, and then took that “moment” to come back. Research has also shown that for many volunteers, job efficiency (效率) declines while multitasking, as compared to when they perform only one task at a time.

Multitasking is easiest when at least one of the tasks is habitual, or requires little thought. Most people don' t find it difficult to eat and read the newspaper at the same time. However, when two or more attention-requiring tasks are attempted at one time, people sometimes make mistakes.

We often don't remember things as well when we're trying to manage several details at the same time. Without mental focus, we may not pay enough attention to new information coming in, so it never makes it into our memory stores. That is one of the main reasons we forget people's names—even sometimes right after they have introduced themselves. Multitasking can also affect our relationships. If someone checks their e-mail while on the phone with a friend, they may come off as absent-minded or disinterested. It can also cause that person to miss or overlook key information being passed on to them.

1. Why are some mental aerobic exercises designed to engage people in multitasking?

A. To make them more productive.

B. To reduce their stress and anxiety.

C. To develop their communication Skills.

D. To help them perform daily tasks more easily.

2. According to Paragraph 2, why may a person suddenly forget who he has called?

A. He may have his prefrontal cortex temporarily damaged.

B. He is probably interrupted by another task.

C. He is probably not very familiar with the person he has called.

D. He may need a rest between dialing and speaking.

3. People tend to make mistakes when       .

A. they perform several challenging tasks at a time

B. new messages are processed one after another

C. their relationships with others are affected

D. the tasks require little thought

4. What is the main idea of the passage?

A. Multitasking has become a way of life.

B. Multitasking often leads to efficiency decline.

C. Multitasking exercises need to be improved.

D. Multitasking enables people to remember things better.

高三英语阅读理解简单题查看答案及解析

The term “multitasking” originally referred to a computer’s ability to carry out several tasks at one time. For many people, multitasking has become a way of life and even a key to success. In fact, some excellent mental aerobic exercises (大脑训练) involve engaging the brain in two or more challenging activities at a time. Although checking e-mail while talking on a phone and reading the newspaper may be second nature for some people, many times multitasking can make us less productive, rather than more. And studies show that too much multitasking can lead to increased stress, anxiety and memory loss.

In order to multitask, the brain uses an area known as the prefrontal cortex (前额叶脑皮层). Brian scans of volunteers performing multiple tasks together show that as they shift from task to task, this front part of the brain actually takes a moment of rest between tasks. You may have experienced a prefrontal cortex “moment of rest” yourself if you’ve ever dialed (拨电话) a phone number and suddenly forgotten who you dialed when the line is answered. What probably occurred is that between the dialing and the answering, your mind shifted to anther thought or task, and then took that “moment” to come back. Research has also shown that for many volunteers, job efficiency (效率) declines while multitasking, as compared to when they perform only one task at a time.

Multitasking is easiest when at least one of the tasks is habitual, or requires little thought. Most people don’t find it difficult to eat and read the newspaper at the same time. However, when two or more attention-requiring tasks are attempted at one time, people sometimes make mistakes.

We often don’t remember things as well when we’re trying to manage several details at the same time. Without mental focus, we may not pay enough attention to new information coming in, so it never makes it into our memory stores. That is one of the main reasons we forget people’s names---even sometimes right after they have introduced themselves. Multitasking can also affect our relationships. If someone checks their e-mail while on the phone with a friend, they may come off as absent-minded or disinterested. It can also cause that person to miss or overlook key information being passed on to them.

1.Why are some mental aerobic exercises designed to engage people in multitasking?

A. To make them more productive.         B. To reduce their stress and anxiety.

C. To develop their communication skills.  D. To help them perform daily tasks more easily.

2.According to Paragraph 2, why may a person suddenly forget who has called?

A. He may leave his prefrontal cortex temporarily damaged.

B. He is probably interrupted by another task.

C. He is probably not very familiar with the person he has called.

D. He may need a rest between dialing and speaking.

3.People tend to make mistake when ____.

A. they perform several challenging tasks at a time.

B. new messages are processed one after another

C. their relationships with others are affected

D. the tasks require little thought

4.What is the main idea of the passage?

A. Multitasking has become a way of life.

B. Multitasking often leads to efficiency decline.

C. Multitasking exercises need to be improved.

D. Multitasking enables people to remember things better.

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

What is the most meaningless thing every Texan will do at the same time this weekend?

You guessed it. We will “fall back” when our clocks are set backward one hour in observance of daylight saving time.

This strange practice has an interesting history. In 1784, Benjamin Franklin published a critical essay in a French newspaper suggesting that Parisians could save $200 million through “the economy of using sunshine instead of candles”. Therefore ， many people owe the origin of the idea of daylight saving time to our Founding Father's writings. In the United States, the clock-changing practice began just over 100 years ago, in 1918, when Congress decided to control time by passing the Standard Time Act to save energy and create time zones. Back then, coal was our top energy source and ensuring that Americans had more daylight working hours made sense.

In 2008, the U. S. Department of Energy assessed the effect of observing daylight saving time on national energy consumption. It found that resetting our clocks amounts to a reduction in our total energy consumption of 0. 02%. The study also determined that sticking with one time could actually save about 0.5% of electricity per day nationwide. Apart from this, the risk of heart attack increases 10% in the days following springing forward, most likely caused by the interruption of biological rhythms. Studies also indicate we are more likely to get sick, we are less productive, and frankly we are just exhausted directly following the time change.

It is hard to explain why we still change our clocks. Perhaps it is due to special interests. Congress passed the Energy Act of 2005, which extended the length of daylight saving time an extra week in the fall, in large part due to an effort by candy producers to allow for an additional daylight hour on the night of Halloween for trick -or - treating.

This May, we sought to end this ancient practice. It would have allowed Texans to vote whether to stay on standard time year-round or daylight saving time year-round. Our proposal passed the House （众议院）133-9. Sadly, once the bill reached the Senate （参议院）,it was never referred to a committee. The proposal died in the Senate without even a word spoken about it on the floor.

I'm moving forward with plans to file the legislation （ 立 法） again in 2021. I urge you to contact your state legislators to move this legislation forward so that this weekend will be one of the last times we have to “fall back.”

1.The possible origin of the idea of daylight saving time is .

A.the ancient legal act B.the influence of other countries

C.the need for time zones D.the advice from a famous politician

2.What does Paragraph 4 mainly talk about?

A.The reasons for health problems. B.The downsides of setting clocks back.

C.The changes in energy consumption. D.The solutions to electricity shortages.

3.It can be inferred from the last two paragraphs that .

A.daylight saving time will last for another two years

B.the author will continue what he has been doing

C.Texans voted for standard time year-round

D.state legislators are for the proposal

4.The passage aims to .

A.analyze the practice of daylight saving time

B.explain the consequences of daylight saving time

C.convince people of the necessity of daylight saving time

D.persuade people to make efforts to stop daylight saving time

高三英语阅读理解困难题查看答案及解析

When several different people look at the same person, it is not unusual for each of them to see different things; when you alone observe one behavior or one person at two different times, you may see different things. The following are but some of the factors that lead to these varying perceptions (感知，认知)：

　(1)Each person’s perceptions of others are formed by his or her own cultural conditioning education, and personal experiences.

　(2) Sometimes perceptions differ because of what we choose to observe and how we deal with what we’ve observed. It is not necessarily true that person perception is based on observations of a particular person. Your observations may be totally controlled by what others have told you about this person; or you may focus (聚焦) primarily on the situation or role relationship. Most people do not use the same yardstick (标准) to measure their parents, their friends, and strangers.

　(3) Sometimes we see only what we want to see or don’t see what may be obvious to others because of out own needs, desires, or temporary emotional states. This is a process known as selective perception. Selective perception is obviously more difficult when contradictory (矛盾的) information is particularly obvious, but it can be done. We can ignore (忽视) the stimulus- “He’s basically a good boy so what I saw was not shoplifting. ”

　We can reduce the importance of the contradictory information- “All kids (孩子) get into mischief (顽皮) . Taking a book from the bookstore isn’t such a big deal. ” We can change the meaning of the contradictory information-”It wasn’t shoplifting because he was going to pay for it later.”…

1.The first factor given by the author that affects our perception is _____.

2.While observing a particular person, ______.

3.Observation of the same person by two people at the same time may differ because ______.

4.The word “stimulus ” in paragraph 4 refers to ______.

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析