Ⅴ.阅读理解
Does Music Make You Smarter?
What interests many parents is that musical training improves the development of the brain—that “music makes us smarter”. According to a study published by the UK's largest music education body, 7 out of every 10 children say they can play a musical instrument. Does this figure(数字) show that most parents do believe the statement, or are the potential benefits of music hard to ignore(忽视)? Ongoing research looks for suggestive evidence proving that musical training may actually strengthen the so-called “smart skills”.
The relationship between music and memory has long been the subject of research. In the 2003 study by The Chinese University of Hong Kong, there were 90 boys between the ages of 6 and 15, half of whom had 1 year to 5 years of musical training and half of whom had none at all. Each of them had a memory test, with the musically trained students recalling more words, and being able to memorize more words after 30 minutes. One year later, a follow-up study showed that those students who had continued training, as well as novices who had recently begun musical training, both showed improvement in retention. However, students who had stopped musical practice fewer than three months after the first study showed no further improvement. These results suggest that musical training might improve memory function.
There is also increasing evidence that musical training may result in structural changes to the brain. Noticeable differences have been found between the brains of musicians and non-musicians. The size of those areas of the musician's brain connected with hearing and visuospatial abilities is larger. A 2014 study found that the part of the cortex(大脑皮层) was thicker in children who had taken musical training.
However, like many scientific studies, research into the benefits of music remains ongoing, with many different opinions. Some deny(否认) that music makes people smarter. Others think that people who are naturally gifted in the cognitive(认知的) functions are simply more likely to play musical instruments. Therefore, it would be premature(草率的) to state without any doubt that music makes people smarter. Whatever the truth behind the statement that “music makes us smarter” is, it should eventually come second only to the fact that music is one of life's greatest pleasures.
1. The studies by The Chinese University of Hong Kong show that ____.
A. most parents believe the statement
B. people who take musical training might be happier
C. musical training may result in changes to the brain
D. musical training might improve students' ability to remember things
2. The underlined word “retention” in Paragraph 2 probably means
A. practice
B. memory
C. train
D. subject
3. What can we learn from the passage?
A. People have different opinions on whether music can make them smarter.
B. A child whose cortex is thicker prefers to take musical training.
C. 70 per cent of students like playing a musical instrument.
D. Students who had taken the test continued training.
4. What is the writer's main purpose in writing this passage?
A. To stress that musical training may benefit the brain.
B. To show that finding pleasure in music is important.
C. To suggest that people learn a musical instrument.
D. To remind that musicians are usually smart.
Does Music Make You Smarter?
What interests many parents is that musical training improves the development of the brain—that “music makes us smarter”. According to a study published by the UK's largest music education body, 7 out of every 10 children say they can play a musical instrument. Does this figure(数字) show that most parents do believe the statement, or are the potential benefits of music hard to ignore(忽视)? Ongoing research looks for suggestive evidence proving that musical training may actually strengthen the so-called “smart skills”.
The relationship between music and memory has long been the subject of research. In the 2003 study by The Chinese University of Hong Kong, there were 90 boys between the ages of 6 and 15, half of whom had 1 year to 5 years of musical training and half of whom had none at all. Each of them had a memory test, with the musically trained students recalling more words, and being able to memorize more words after 30 minutes. One year later, a follow-up study showed that those students who had continued training, as well as novices who had recently begun musical training, both showed improvement in retention. However, students who had stopped musical practice fewer than three months after the first study showed no further improvement. These results suggest that musical training might improve memory function.
There is also increasing evidence that musical training may result in structural changes to the brain. Noticeable differences have been found between the brains of musicians and non-musicians. The size of those areas of the musician's brain connected with hearing and visuospatial abilities is larger. A 2014 study found that the part of the cortex(大脑皮层) was thicker in children who had taken musical training.
However, like many scientific studies, research into the benefits of music remains ongoing, with many different opinions. Some deny(否认) that music makes people smarter. Others think that people who are naturally gifted in the cognitive(认知的) functions are simply more likely to play musical instruments. Therefore, it would be premature(草率的) to state without any doubt that music makes people smarter. Whatever the truth behind the statement that “music makes us smarter” is, it should eventually come second only to the fact that music is one of life's greatest pleasures.
1. The studies by The Chinese University of Hong Kong show that ____.
A. most parents believe the statement
B. people who take musical training might be happier
C. musical training may result in changes to the brain
D. musical training might improve students' ability to remember things
2. The underlined word “retention” in Paragraph 2 probably means
A. practice
B. memory
C. train
D. subject
3. What can we learn from the passage?
A. People have different opinions on whether music can make them smarter.
B. A child whose cortex is thicker prefers to take musical training.
C. 70 per cent of students like playing a musical instrument.
D. Students who had taken the test continued training.
4. What is the writer's main purpose in writing this passage?
A. To stress that musical training may benefit the brain.
B. To show that finding pleasure in music is important.
C. To suggest that people learn a musical instrument.
D. To remind that musicians are usually smart.
答案
1~4 D B A A
【文章大意】本文是一篇说明文，通过一系列研究对“音乐能让你更聪明吗？”这个问题做出了解答。
1. D 细节理解题。根据第二段关于香港中文大学的研究可知，其表明音乐训练可能会提高学生的记忆力。故选 D。
2. B 词义猜测题。根据“These results suggest that musical training might improve memory function.”可知此处讲那些继续接受音乐训练的学生，以及最近开始接受音乐训练的新手，记忆力都有所提高，由此推测 retention 在此处意为“记忆力”。故选 B。
3. A 细节理解题。根据“However, like many scientific studies, research into the benefits of music remains ongoing, with many different opinions. Some deny that music makes people smarter...”可知人们对音乐是否能使人更聪明有不同的看法。故选 A。
4. A 写作目的题。通读全文可知，本文通过一系列研究对“音乐能让你更聪明吗？”这个问题做出了解答，结合文中大量研究证明音乐能使人更聪明、记忆力更好等，可推出作者写这篇文章是为了强调音乐训练可能对大脑有益。故选 A。
【文章大意】本文是一篇说明文，通过一系列研究对“音乐能让你更聪明吗？”这个问题做出了解答。
1. D 细节理解题。根据第二段关于香港中文大学的研究可知，其表明音乐训练可能会提高学生的记忆力。故选 D。
2. B 词义猜测题。根据“These results suggest that musical training might improve memory function.”可知此处讲那些继续接受音乐训练的学生，以及最近开始接受音乐训练的新手，记忆力都有所提高，由此推测 retention 在此处意为“记忆力”。故选 B。
3. A 细节理解题。根据“However, like many scientific studies, research into the benefits of music remains ongoing, with many different opinions. Some deny that music makes people smarter...”可知人们对音乐是否能使人更聪明有不同的看法。故选 A。
4. A 写作目的题。通读全文可知，本文通过一系列研究对“音乐能让你更聪明吗？”这个问题做出了解答，结合文中大量研究证明音乐能使人更聪明、记忆力更好等，可推出作者写这篇文章是为了强调音乐训练可能对大脑有益。故选 A。
