阅读理解。
人的记忆力为什么会变差？请阅读下面短文，根据短文内容从每小题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中选出最佳选项。
“What’s the name of our neighbour? I can’t remember right now.” Have you ever heard your grandparents ask questions like this? We usually think that older people’s memory gets worse because their brains grow weaker. But now a team of scientists at the University of Tübingen in Germany has come up with a new idea.
“The human brain works more slowly in old age simply because it has stored more information over time,” said Michael Ramscar, the lead scientist.
The findings are based on some computer simulations(模拟). Scientists had the computer receive new information every day. When the computer took in a small amount(数量) of information, its performance in cognitive tests was similar to that of a young adult. However, when processing(处理) a person’s lifetime experiences, it performed like an older adult.
Often the computer runs slower over time, but not because its processing capacity(能力) has declined. Rather, increased experiences cause the computer’s database(数据库) to grow, giving it more data to process, which takes more time.
This is similar to what happens in the brains of older people. Imagine that a person remembers two people’s birthdays and never gets them wrong, while another knows about the birthdays of 2,000 people, yet can only match the right person to the right birthday 9 times out of 10. Can you say the first person has a better memory than the second person?
The basic idea is that, as Benedict Carey, a science reporter, wrote in an article, the larger the “library” you have in your brain, the longer it usually takes to find a certain word.
1. What causes memory problems in older people according to the passage?
()
A. They can’t pay enough attention.
B. They don’t learn new things often.
C. Their brains become weak over time.
D. Their brains have stored too much information.
2. What does the underlined word “declined” in Paragraph 4 mean?
()
A. Dropped.
B. Increased.
C. Improved.
D. Disappeared.
3. Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
()
A. The scientists did their research by testing old people’s memory.
B. The simulations show that the old can learn faster than the young.
C. The person who knows about the birthdays of 2,000 people is smarter.
D. The computer that receives more experiences takes more time to process information.
4. In which part of the magazine could we read the passage?
()
A. Sports.
B. Travel.
C. Art.
D. Science.

1. D
2. A
3. D
4. D

【分析】
首先通读短文，明确核心观点：老年人记忆力变慢并非大脑变弱，而是大脑存储了过多信息，处理信息耗时更长。针对每道题的解题思路：1题是细节理解题，需定位原文关于老年人记忆问题原因的表述；2题是词义猜测题，结合上下文逻辑推断词义；3题是细节判断题，需逐一核对选项与原文内容是否一致；4题是文章出处题，根据文章主题判断所属板块。
【解析】
1. 细节理解题：根据短文第二段“The human brain works more slowly in old age simply because it has stored more information over time”可知，老年人记忆问题的原因是大脑存储了过多信息，故选D。
2. 词义猜测题：第四段提到“not because its processing capacity has declined. Rather, increased experiences cause the computer’s database to grow, giving it more data to process, which takes more time”，由“rather”（相反）可知，declined与“增长”相反，意为“下降”，对应A选项。
3. 细节判断题：A选项错误，研究基于电脑模拟而非测试老人记忆；B选项错误，模拟显示存储多信息时表现像老年人，并非老人学得更快；C选项错误，例子中2000个生日的人并非更聪明；D选项正确，第三、四段提到接收更多经验的电脑处理信息耗时更长，故选D。
4. 文章出处题：短文围绕记忆力的科学研究展开，属于科普类内容，应出自杂志的科学板块，故选D。
【答案】
1.D 2.A 3.D 4.D
【知识点】
英语阅读理解、细节理解题、词义猜测题
【点评】
本题为科普类英语阅读理解，涵盖细节理解、词义猜测、细节判断、文章出处等常见题型，要求学生精准定位原文信息，掌握词义猜测的逻辑方法，整体难度适中，适合初中阶段学生练习。
【难度系数】
0.6