一、Part Ⅱ Listening Comprehension
1、Question 1 is based on the news report you have just heard.
A、The International Labor Organization’s key objective.
B、The basic social protection for the most vulnerable.
C、Rising unemployment worldwide.
D、Global economic recovery.
2、Question 2 is based on the news report you have just heard.
A、Many countries have not taken measures to create enough jobs.
B、Few countries know how to address the current economic crisis.
C、Few countries have realized the seriousness of the current crisis.
D、Many countries need support to improve their people’s livelihood.
3、Question 3 is based on the news report you have just heard.
A、Serve standardized food nationwide.
B、Put calorie information on the menu.
C、Increase protein content in the food.
D、Offer convenient food to customers.
4、Question 4 is based on the news report you have just heard.
A、They will be fined.
B、They will be closed.
C、They will get a warning.
D、They will lose customers.
5、Question 5 is based on the news report you have just heard.
A、Inability to implement their business plans.
B、Inability to keep turning out novel products.
C、Lack of a successful business model of their own.
D、Failure to integrate innovation into their business.
6、Question 6 is based on the news report you have just heard.
A、It is the secret to business success.
B、It is the creation of something new.
C、It is a magic tool to bring big rewards.
D、It is an essential part of business culture.
7、Question 7 is based on the news report you have just heard.
A、Its hardworking employees.
B、Its flexible promotion strategy.
C、Its innovation culture.
D、Its willingness to make investments.
8、Question 8 is based on the conversation you have just heard.
A、He’s got addicted to technology.
B、He is not very good at socializing.
C、He is crazy about text-messaging.
D、He does not talk long on the phone.
9、Question 9 is based on the conversation you have just heard.
A、Talk big.
B、Talk at length.
C、Gossip a lot.
D、Forget herself.
10、Question 10 is based on the conversation you have just heard.
A、He thought it was cool.
B、He needed the practice.
C、He wanted to stay connected with them.
D、He had an urgent message to send.
11、Question 11 is based on the conversation you have just heard.
A、It poses a challenge to seniors.
B、It saves both time and money.
C、It is childish and unprofessional.
D、It is cool and convenient.
12、Question 12 is based on the conversation you have just heard.
A、He wants to change his job assignment.
B、He is unhappy with his department manager.
C、He thinks he deserves extra pay for overtime.
D、He is often singled out for criticism by his boss.
13、Question 13 is based on the conversation you have just heard.
A、His workload was much too heavy.
B、His immediate boss did not trust him.
C、His colleagues often refused to cooperate.
D、His salary was too low for his responsibility.
14、Question 14 is based on the conversation you have just heard.
A、He never knows how to refuse.
B、He is always ready to help others.
C、His boss has a lot of trust in him.
D、His boss has no sense of fairness.
15、Question 15 is based on the conversation you have just heard.
A、Put all his complaints in writing.
B、Wait and see what happens next.
C、Learn to say no when necessary.
D、Talk to his boss in person first.
16、Question 16 is based on the passage you have just heard.
A、The importance of sleep to a healthy life.
B、Reasons for Americans’ decline in sleep.
C、Some tips to improve the quality of sleep.
D、Diseases associated with lack of sleep.
17、Question 17 is based on the passage you have just heard.
A、They are more health-conscious.
B、They are changing their living habits.
C、They get less and less sleep.
D、They know the dangers of lack of sleep.
18、Question 18 is based on the passage you have just heard.
A、Their weight will go down.
B、Their mind function will deteriorate.
C、Their work efficiency will decrease.
D、Their blood pressure will rise.
19、Question 19 is based on the passage you have just heard.
A、How much you can afford to pay.
B、What course you are going to choose.
C、Which university you are going to apply to.
D、When you are going to submit your application.
20、Question 20 is based on the passage you have just heard.
A、The list of courses studied.
B、The full record of scores.
C、The references from teachers.
D、The personal statement.
21、Question 21 is based on the passage you have just heard.
A、Specify what they would like to do after graduation.
B、Describe in detail how much they would enjoy studying.
C、Indicate they have reflected and thought about the subject.
D、Emphasize that they admire the professors in the university.
22、Question 22 is based on the passage you have just heard.
A、It was equipped with rubber tyres.
B、It was built in the late 19th century.
C、It was purchased by the Royal family.
D、It was designed by an English engineer.
23、Question 23 is based on the passage you have just heard.
A、They consumed lots of petrol.
B、They took two passengers only.
C、They were difficult to drive.
D、They often broke down.
24、Question 24 is based on the passage you have just heard.
A、They were produced on the assembly line.
B、They were built with less costly materials.
C、They were modeled after British cars.
D、They were made for ordinary use.
25、Question 25 is based on the passage you have just heard.
A、It made news all over the world.
B、It was built for the Royal family.
C、It marked a new era in motor travel.
D、It attracted large numbers of motorists.
二、Part III Reading Comprehension
Physical activity does the body good, and there’s growing evidence that it helps the brain too. Researchers in the Netherlands report that children who get more exercise, whether at school or on their own, (26)_____ to have higher GPAs and better scores on standardized tests. In a (27)_____ of 14 studies that looked at physical activity and academic (28)_____, investigators found that the more children moved, the better their grades were in school, (29)_____ in the basic subjects of math, English and reading.
The data will certainly fuel the ongoing debate over whether physical education classes should be cut as schools struggle to (30)_____ on smaller budgets. The arguments against physical education have included concerns that gym time may be taking away from study time. With standardized test scores in the U.S. (31)_____ in recent years, some administrators believe students need to spend more time in the classroom instead of on the playground. But as these findings show, exercise and academics may not be (32)_____ exclusive. Physical activity can improve blood (33)_____ to the brain, fueling memory, attention and creativity, which are (34)_____ to learning. And exercise releases hormones that can improve (35)_____ and relieve stress, which can also help learning. So while it may seem as if kids are just exercising their bodies when they’re running around, they may actually be exercising their brains as well.
26、(1)
A、depressing
B、tend
C、performance
D、particularly
E、essential
F、consequently
G、mutually
H、current
I、feasible
J、survive
K、attendance
L、review
M、flow
N、dropping
O、mood
Physical activity does the body good, and there’s growing evidence that it helps the brain too. Researchers in the Netherlands report that children who get more exercise, whether at school or on their own, (26)_____ to have higher GPAs and better scores on standardized tests. In a (27)_____ of 14 studies that looked at physical activity and academic (28)_____, investigators found that the more children moved, the better their grades were in school, (29)_____ in the basic subjects of math, English and reading.
The data will certainly fuel the ongoing debate over whether physical education classes should be cut as schools struggle to (30)_____ on smaller budgets. The arguments against physical education have included concerns that gym time may be taking away from study time. With standardized test scores in the U.S. (31)_____ in recent years, some administrators believe students need to spend more time in the classroom instead of on the playground. But as these findings show, exercise and academics may not be (32)_____ exclusive. Physical activity can improve blood (33)_____ to the brain, fueling memory, attention and creativity, which are (34)_____ to learning. And exercise releases hormones that can improve (35)_____ and relieve stress, which can also help learning. So while it may seem as if kids are just exercising their bodies when they’re running around, they may actually be exercising their brains as well.
27、(2)
A、depressing
B、tend
C、performance
D、particularly
E、essential
F、consequently
G、mutually
H、current
I、feasible
J、survive
K、attendance
L、review
M、flow
N、dropping
O、mood
Physical activity does the body good, and there’s growing evidence that it helps the brain too. Researchers in the Netherlands report that children who get more exercise, whether at school or on their own, (26)_____ to have higher GPAs and better scores on standardized tests. In a (27)_____ of 14 studies that looked at physical activity and academic (28)_____, investigators found that the more children moved, the better their grades were in school, (29)_____ in the basic subjects of math, English and reading.
The data will certainly fuel the ongoing debate over whether physical education classes should be cut as schools struggle to (30)_____ on smaller budgets. The arguments against physical education have included concerns that gym time may be taking away from study time. With standardized test scores in the U.S. (31)_____ in recent years, some administrators believe students need to spend more time in the classroom instead of on the playground. But as these findings show, exercise and academics may not be (32)_____ exclusive. Physical activity can improve blood (33)_____ to the brain, fueling memory, attention and creativity, which are (34)_____ to learning. And exercise releases hormones that can improve (35)_____ and relieve stress, which can also help learning. So while it may seem as if kids are just exercising their bodies when they’re running around, they may actually be exercising their brains as well.
28、(3)
A、depressing
B、tend
C、performance
D、particularly
E、essential
F、consequently
G、mutually
H、current
I、feasible
J、survive
K、attendance
L、review
M、flow
N、dropping
O、mood
Physical activity does the body good, and there’s growing evidence that it helps the brain too. Researchers in the Netherlands report that children who get more exercise, whether at school or on their own, (26)_____ to have higher GPAs and better scores on standardized tests. In a (27)_____ of 14 studies that looked at physical activity and academic (28)_____, investigators found that the more children moved, the better their grades were in school, (29)_____ in the basic subjects of math, English and reading.
The data will certainly fuel the ongoing debate over whether physical education classes should be cut as schools struggle to (30)_____ on smaller budgets. The arguments against physical education have included concerns that gym time may be taking away from study time. With standardized test scores in the U.S. (31)_____ in recent years, some administrators believe students need to spend more time in the classroom instead of on the playground. But as these findings show, exercise and academics may not be (32)_____ exclusive. Physical activity can improve blood (33)_____ to the brain, fueling memory, attention and creativity, which are (34)_____ to learning. And exercise releases hormones that can improve (35)_____ and relieve stress, which can also help learning. So while it may seem as if kids are just exercising their bodies when they’re running around, they may actually be exercising their brains as well.
29、(4)
A、depressing
B、tend
C、performance
D、particularly
E、essential
F、consequently
G、mutually
H、current
I、feasible
J、survive
K、attendance
L、review
M、flow
N、dropping
O、mood
Physical activity does the body good, and there’s growing evidence that it helps the brain too. Researchers in the Netherlands report that children who get more exercise, whether at school or on their own, (26)_____ to have higher GPAs and better scores on standardized tests. In a (27)_____ of 14 studies that looked at physical activity and academic (28)_____, investigators found that the more children moved, the better their grades were in school, (29)_____ in the basic subjects of math, English and reading.
The data will certainly fuel the ongoing debate over whether physical education classes should be cut as schools struggle to (30)_____ on smaller budgets. The arguments against physical education have included concerns that gym time may be taking away from study time. With standardized test scores in the U.S. (31)_____ in recent years, some administrators believe students need to spend more time in the classroom instead of on the playground. But as these findings show, exercise and academics may not be (32)_____ exclusive. Physical activity can improve blood (33)_____ to the brain, fueling memory, attention and creativity, which are (34)_____ to learning. And exercise releases hormones that can improve (35)_____ and relieve stress, which can also help learning. So while it may seem as if kids are just exercising their bodies when they’re running around, they may actually be exercising their brains as well.
30、(5)
A、depressing
B、tend
C、performance
D、particularly
E、essential
F、consequently
G、mutually
H、current
I、feasible
J、survive
K、attendance
L、review
M、flow
N、dropping
O、mood
Physical activity does the body good, and there’s growing evidence that it helps the brain too. Researchers in the Netherlands report that children who get more exercise, whether at school or on their own, (26)_____ to have higher GPAs and better scores on standardized tests. In a (27)_____ of 14 studies that looked at physical activity and academic (28)_____, investigators found that the more children moved, the better their grades were in school, (29)_____ in the basic subjects of math, English and reading.
The data will certainly fuel the ongoing debate over whether physical education classes should be cut as schools struggle to (30)_____ on smaller budgets. The arguments against physical education have included concerns that gym time may be taking away from study time. With standardized test scores in the U.S. (31)_____ in recent years, some administrators believe students need to spend more time in the classroom instead of on the playground. But as these findings show, exercise and academics may not be (32)_____ exclusive. Physical activity can improve blood (33)_____ to the brain, fueling memory, attention and creativity, which are (34)_____ to learning. And exercise releases hormones that can improve (35)_____ and relieve stress, which can also help learning. So while it may seem as if kids are just exercising their bodies when they’re running around, they may actually be exercising their brains as well.
31、(6)
A、depressing
B、tend
C、performance
D、particularly
E、essential
F、consequently
G、mutually
H、current
I、feasible
J、survive
K、attendance
L、review
M、flow
N、dropping
O、mood
Physical activity does the body good, and there’s growing evidence that it helps the brain too. Researchers in the Netherlands report that children who get more exercise, whether at school or on their own, (26)_____ to have higher GPAs and better scores on standardized tests. In a (27)_____ of 14 studies that looked at physical activity and academic (28)_____, investigators found that the more children moved, the better their grades were in school, (29)_____ in the basic subjects of math, English and reading.
The data will certainly fuel the ongoing debate over whether physical education classes should be cut as schools struggle to (30)_____ on smaller budgets. The arguments against physical education have included concerns that gym time may be taking away from study time. With standardized test scores in the U.S. (31)_____ in recent years, some administrators believe students need to spend more time in the classroom instead of on the playground. But as these findings show, exercise and academics may not be (32)_____ exclusive. Physical activity can improve blood (33)_____ to the brain, fueling memory, attention and creativity, which are (34)_____ to learning. And exercise releases hormones that can improve (35)_____ and relieve stress, which can also help learning. So while it may seem as if kids are just exercising their bodies when they’re running around, they may actually be exercising their brains as well.
32、(7)
A、depressing
B、tend
C、performance
D、particularly
E、essential
F、consequently
G、mutually
H、current
I、feasible
J、survive
K、attendance
L、review
M、flow
N、dropping
O、mood
Physical activity does the body good, and there’s growing evidence that it helps the brain too. Researchers in the Netherlands report that children who get more exercise, whether at school or on their own, (26)_____ to have higher GPAs and better scores on standardized tests. In a (27)_____ of 14 studies that looked at physical activity and academic (28)_____, investigators found that the more children moved, the better their grades were in school, (29)_____ in the basic subjects of math, English and reading.
The data will certainly fuel the ongoing debate over whether physical education classes should be cut as schools struggle to (30)_____ on smaller budgets. The arguments against physical education have included concerns that gym time may be taking away from study time. With standardized test scores in the U.S. (31)_____ in recent years, some administrators believe students need to spend more time in the classroom instead of on the playground. But as these findings show, exercise and academics may not be (32)_____ exclusive. Physical activity can improve blood (33)_____ to the brain, fueling memory, attention and creativity, which are (34)_____ to learning. And exercise releases hormones that can improve (35)_____ and relieve stress, which can also help learning. So while it may seem as if kids are just exercising their bodies when they’re running around, they may actually be exercising their brains as well.
33、(8)
A、depressing
B、tend
C、performance
D、particularly
E、essential
F、consequently
G、mutually
H、current
I、feasible
J、survive
K、attendance
L、review
M、flow
N、dropping
O、mood
Physical activity does the body good, and there’s growing evidence that it helps the brain too. Researchers in the Netherlands report that children who get more exercise, whether at school or on their own, (26)_____ to have higher GPAs and better scores on standardized tests. In a (27)_____ of 14 studies that looked at physical activity and academic (28)_____, investigators found that the more children moved, the better their grades were in school, (29)_____ in the basic subjects of math, English and reading.
The data will certainly fuel the ongoing debate over whether physical education classes should be cut as schools struggle to (30)_____ on smaller budgets. The arguments against physical education have included concerns that gym time may be taking away from study time. With standardized test scores in the U.S. (31)_____ in recent years, some administrators believe students need to spend more time in the classroom instead of on the playground. But as these findings show, exercise and academics may not be (32)_____ exclusive. Physical activity can improve blood (33)_____ to the brain, fueling memory, attention and creativity, which are (34)_____ to learning. And exercise releases hormones that can improve (35)_____ and relieve stress, which can also help learning. So while it may seem as if kids are just exercising their bodies when they’re running around, they may actually be exercising their brains as well.
34、(9)
A、depressing
B、tend
C、performance
D、particularly
E、essential
F、consequently
G、mutually
H、current
I、feasible
J、survive
K、attendance
L、review
M、flow
N、dropping
O、mood
Physical activity does the body good, and there’s growing evidence that it helps the brain too. Researchers in the Netherlands report that children who get more exercise, whether at school or on their own, (26)_____ to have higher GPAs and better scores on standardized tests. In a (27)_____ of 14 studies that looked at physical activity and academic (28)_____, investigators found that the more children moved, the better their grades were in school, (29)_____ in the basic subjects of math, English and reading.
The data will certainly fuel the ongoing debate over whether physical education classes should be cut as schools struggle to (30)_____ on smaller budgets. The arguments against physical education have included concerns that gym time may be taking away from study time. With standardized test scores in the U.S. (31)_____ in recent years, some administrators believe students need to spend more time in the classroom instead of on the playground. But as these findings show, exercise and academics may not be (32)_____ exclusive. Physical activity can improve blood (33)_____ to the brain, fueling memory, attention and creativity, which are (34)_____ to learning. And exercise releases hormones that can improve (35)_____ and relieve stress, which can also help learning. So while it may seem as if kids are just exercising their bodies when they’re running around, they may actually be exercising their brains as well.
35、(10)
A、depressing
B、tend
C、performance
D、particularly
E、essential
F、consequently
G、mutually
H、current
I、feasible
J、survive
K、attendance
L、review
M、flow
N、dropping
O、mood
Finding the Right Home—and Contentment, Too
【A】When your elderly relative needs to enter some sort of long-term care facility—a moment few parents or children approach without fear—what you would like is to have everything made clear.
【B】Does assisted living really mark a great improvement over a nursing home, or has the industry simply hired better interior designers? Are nursing homes as bad as people fear, or is that an out-moded stereotype (固定看法)? Can doing one’s homework really steer families to the best places? It is genuinely hard to know.
【C】I am about to make things more complicated by suggesting that what kind of facility an older person lives in may matter less than we have assumed. And that the characteristics adult children look for when they begin the search are not necessarily the things that make a difference to the people who are going to move in. I am not talking about the quality of care, let me hastily add. Nobody flourishes in a gloomy environment with irresponsible staff and a poor safety record. But an accumulating body of research indicates that some distinctions between one type of elder care and another have little real bearing on how well residents do.
【D】The most recent of these studies, published in The journal of Applied Gerontology, surveyed 150 Connecticut residents of assisted living, nursing homes and smaller residential care homes (known in some states as board and care homes or adult care homes). Researchers from the University of Connecticut Health Center asked the residents a large number of questions about their quality of life, emotional well-being and social interaction, as well as about the quality of the facilities.
【E】“We thought we would see differences based on the housing types,” said the lead author of the study, Julie Robison, an associate professor of medicine at the university. A reasonable assumption—don’t families struggle to avoid nursing homes and suffer real guilt if they can’t?
【F】In the initial results, assisted living residents did paint the most positive picture. They were less likely to report symptoms of depression than those in the other facilities, for instance, and less likely to be bored or lonely. They scored higher on social interaction.
【G】But when the researchers plugged in a number of other variables, such differences disappeared. It is not the housing type, they found, that creates differences in residents’ responses. “It is the characteristics of the specific environment they are in, combined with their own personal characteristics—how healthy they feel they are, their age and marital status,” Dr. Robison explained. Whether residents felt involved in the decision to move and how long they had lived there also proved significant.
【H】An elderly person who describes herself as in poor health, therefore, might be no less depressed in assisted living (even if her children preferred it) than in a nursing home. A person who bad input into where he would move and has had time to adapt to it might do as well in a nursing home as in a small residential care home, other factors being equal. It is an interaction between the person and the place, not the sort of place in itself, that leads to better or worse experiences. “You can’t just say, ‘Let’s put this person in a residential care home instead of a nursing home—she will be much better off,” Dr. Robison said. What matters, she added, “is a combination of what people bring in with them, and what they find there.”
【I】Such findings, which run counter to common sense, have surfaced before. In a multi-state study of assisted living, for instance, University of North Carolina researchers found that a host of variables—the facility’s type, size or age; whether a chain owned it; how attractive the neighborhood was—had no significant relationship to how the residents fared in terms of illness, mental decline, hospitalizations or mortality. What mattered most was the residents’ physical health and mental status. What people were like when they came in had greater consequence than what happened one they were there.
【J】As I was considering all this, a press release from a respected research firm crossed my desk, announcing that the five-star rating system that Medicare developed in 2008 to help families compare nursing home quality also has little relationship to how satisfied its residents or their family members are. As a matter of fact, consumers expressed higher satisfaction with the one-star facilities, the lowest rated, than with the five-star ones. (More on this study and the star ratings will appear in a subsequent post.)
【K】Before we collectively tear our hair out—how are we supposed to find our way in a landscape this confusing?—here is a thought from Dr. Philip Sloane, a geriatrician（老年病学专家）at the University of North Carolina：“In a way, that could be liberating for families.”
【L】Of course, sons and daughters want to visit the facilities, talk to the administrators and residents and other families, and do everything possible to fulfill their duties. But perhaps they don’t have to turn themselves into private investigators or Congressional subcommittees. “Families can look a bit more for where the residents are going to be happy,” Dr. Sloane said. And involving the future resident in the process can be very important.
【M】We all have our own ideas about what would bring our parents happiness. They have their ideas, too. A friend recently took her mother to visit an expensive assisted living/nursing home near my town. I have seen this place—it is elegant, inside and out. But nobody greeted the daughter and mother when they arrived, though the visit had been planned; nobody introduced them to the other residents. When they had lunch in the dining room, they sat alone at a table.
【N】The daughter feared her mother would be ignored there, and so she decided to move her into a more welcoming facility. Based on what is emerging from some of this research, that might have been as rational a way as any to reach a decision.
36、36. Many people feel guilty when they cannot find a place other than a nursing home for their parents.
A、A
B、B
C、C
D、D
E、E
F、F
G、G
H、H
I、I
J、J
K、K
L、L
M、M
N、N
Finding the Right Home—and Contentment, Too
【A】When your elderly relative needs to enter some sort of long-term care facility—a moment few parents or children approach without fear—what you would like is to have everything made clear.
【B】Does assisted living really mark a great improvement over a nursing home, or has the industry simply hired better interior designers? Are nursing homes as bad as people fear, or is that an out-moded stereotype (固定看法)? Can doing one’s homework really steer families to the best places? It is genuinely hard to know.
【C】I am about to make things more complicated by suggesting that what kind of facility an older person lives in may matter less than we have assumed. And that the characteristics adult children look for when they begin the search are not necessarily the things that make a difference to the people who are going to move in. I am not talking about the quality of care, let me hastily add. Nobody flourishes in a gloomy environment with irresponsible staff and a poor safety record. But an accumulating body of research indicates that some distinctions between one type of elder care and another have little real bearing on how well residents do.
【D】The most recent of these studies, published in The journal of Applied Gerontology, surveyed 150 Connecticut residents of assisted living, nursing homes and smaller residential care homes (known in some states as board and care homes or adult care homes). Researchers from the University of Connecticut Health Center asked the residents a large number of questions about their quality of life, emotional well-being and social interaction, as well as about the quality of the facilities.
【E】“We thought we would see differences based on the housing types,” said the lead author of the study, Julie Robison, an associate professor of medicine at the university. A reasonable assumption—don’t families struggle to avoid nursing homes and suffer real guilt if they can’t?
【F】In the initial results, assisted living residents did paint the most positive picture. They were less likely to report symptoms of depression than those in the other facilities, for instance, and less likely to be bored or lonely. They scored higher on social interaction.
【G】But when the researchers plugged in a number of other variables, such differences disappeared. It is not the housing type, they found, that creates differences in residents’ responses. “It is the characteristics of the specific environment they are in, combined with their own personal characteristics—how healthy they feel they are, their age and marital status,” Dr. Robison explained. Whether residents felt involved in the decision to move and how long they had lived there also proved significant.
【H】An elderly person who describes herself as in poor health, therefore, might be no less depressed in assisted living (even if her children preferred it) than in a nursing home. A person who bad input into where he would move and has had time to adapt to it might do as well in a nursing home as in a small residential care home, other factors being equal. It is an interaction between the person and the place, not the sort of place in itself, that leads to better or worse experiences. “You can’t just say, ‘Let’s put this person in a residential care home instead of a nursing home—she will be much better off,” Dr. Robison said. What matters, she added, “is a combination of what people bring in with them, and what they find there.”
【I】Such findings, which run counter to common sense, have surfaced before. In a multi-state study of assisted living, for instance, University of North Carolina researchers found that a host of variables—the facility’s type, size or age; whether a chain owned it; how attractive the neighborhood was—had no significant relationship to how the residents fared in terms of illness, mental decline, hospitalizations or mortality. What mattered most was the residents’ physical health and mental status. What people were like when they came in had greater consequence than what happened one they were there.
【J】As I was considering all this, a press release from a respected research firm crossed my desk, announcing that the five-star rating system that Medicare developed in 2008 to help families compare nursing home quality also has little relationship to how satisfied its residents or their family members are. As a matter of fact, consumers expressed higher satisfaction with the one-star facilities, the lowest rated, than with the five-star ones. (More on this study and the star ratings will appear in a subsequent post.)
【K】Before we collectively tear our hair out—how are we supposed to find our way in a landscape this confusing?—here is a thought from Dr. Philip Sloane, a geriatrician（老年病学专家）at the University of North Carolina：“In a way, that could be liberating for families.”
【L】Of course, sons and daughters want to visit the facilities, talk to the administrators and residents and other families, and do everything possible to fulfill their duties. But perhaps they don’t have to turn themselves into private investigators or Congressional subcommittees. “Families can look a bit more for where the residents are going to be happy,” Dr. Sloane said. And involving the future resident in the process can be very important.
【M】We all have our own ideas about what would bring our parents happiness. They have their ideas, too. A friend recently took her mother to visit an expensive assisted living/nursing home near my town. I have seen this place—it is elegant, inside and out. But nobody greeted the daughter and mother when they arrived, though the visit had been planned; nobody introduced them to the other residents. When they had lunch in the dining room, they sat alone at a table.
【N】The daughter feared her mother would be ignored there, and so she decided to move her into a more welcoming facility. Based on what is emerging from some of this research, that might have been as rational a way as any to reach a decision.
37、37. Though it helps for children to investigate care facilities, involving their parents in the decision-making process may prove very important.
A、A
B、B
C、C
D、D
E、E
F、F
G、G
H、H
I、I
J、J
K、K
L、L
M、M
N、N
Finding the Right Home—and Contentment, Too
【A】When your elderly relative needs to enter some sort of long-term care facility—a moment few parents or children approach without fear—what you would like is to have everything made clear.
【B】Does assisted living really mark a great improvement over a nursing home, or has the industry simply hired better interior designers? Are nursing homes as bad as people fear, or is that an out-moded stereotype (固定看法)? Can doing one’s homework really steer families to the best places? It is genuinely hard to know.
【C】I am about to make things more complicated by suggesting that what kind of facility an older person lives in may matter less than we have assumed. And that the characteristics adult children look for when they begin the search are not necessarily the things that make a difference to the people who are going to move in. I am not talking about the quality of care, let me hastily add. Nobody flourishes in a gloomy environment with irresponsible staff and a poor safety record. But an accumulating body of research indicates that some distinctions between one type of elder care and another have little real bearing on how well residents do.
【D】The most recent of these studies, published in The journal of Applied Gerontology, surveyed 150 Connecticut residents of assisted living, nursing homes and smaller residential care homes (known in some states as board and care homes or adult care homes). Researchers from the University of Connecticut Health Center asked the residents a large number of questions about their quality of life, emotional well-being and social interaction, as well as about the quality of the facilities.
【E】“We thought we would see differences based on the housing types,” said the lead author of the study, Julie Robison, an associate professor of medicine at the university. A reasonable assumption—don’t families struggle to avoid nursing homes and suffer real guilt if they can’t?
【F】In the initial results, assisted living residents did paint the most positive picture. They were less likely to report symptoms of depression than those in the other facilities, for instance, and less likely to be bored or lonely. They scored higher on social interaction.
【G】But when the researchers plugged in a number of other variables, such differences disappeared. It is not the housing type, they found, that creates differences in residents’ responses. “It is the characteristics of the specific environment they are in, combined with their own personal characteristics—how healthy they feel they are, their age and marital status,” Dr. Robison explained. Whether residents felt involved in the decision to move and how long they had lived there also proved significant.
【H】An elderly person who describes herself as in poor health, therefore, might be no less depressed in assisted living (even if her children preferred it) than in a nursing home. A person who bad input into where he would move and has had time to adapt to it might do as well in a nursing home as in a small residential care home, other factors being equal. It is an interaction between the person and the place, not the sort of place in itself, that leads to better or worse experiences. “You can’t just say, ‘Let’s put this person in a residential care home instead of a nursing home—she will be much better off,” Dr. Robison said. What matters, she added, “is a combination of what people bring in with them, and what they find there.”
【I】Such findings, which run counter to common sense, have surfaced before. In a multi-state study of assisted living, for instance, University of North Carolina researchers found that a host of variables—the facility’s type, size or age; whether a chain owned it; how attractive the neighborhood was—had no significant relationship to how the residents fared in terms of illness, mental decline, hospitalizations or mortality. What mattered most was the residents’ physical health and mental status. What people were like when they came in had greater consequence than what happened one they were there.
【J】As I was considering all this, a press release from a respected research firm crossed my desk, announcing that the five-star rating system that Medicare developed in 2008 to help families compare nursing home quality also has little relationship to how satisfied its residents or their family members are. As a matter of fact, consumers expressed higher satisfaction with the one-star facilities, the lowest rated, than with the five-star ones. (More on this study and the star ratings will appear in a subsequent post.)
【K】Before we collectively tear our hair out—how are we supposed to find our way in a landscape this confusing?—here is a thought from Dr. Philip Sloane, a geriatrician（老年病学专家）at the University of North Carolina：“In a way, that could be liberating for families.”
【L】Of course, sons and daughters want to visit the facilities, talk to the administrators and residents and other families, and do everything possible to fulfill their duties. But perhaps they don’t have to turn themselves into private investigators or Congressional subcommittees. “Families can look a bit more for where the residents are going to be happy,” Dr. Sloane said. And involving the future resident in the process can be very important.
【M】We all have our own ideas about what would bring our parents happiness. They have their ideas, too. A friend recently took her mother to visit an expensive assisted living/nursing home near my town. I have seen this place—it is elegant, inside and out. But nobody greeted the daughter and mother when they arrived, though the visit had been planned; nobody introduced them to the other residents. When they had lunch in the dining room, they sat alone at a table.
【N】The daughter feared her mother would be ignored there, and so she decided to move her into a more welcoming facility. Based on what is emerging from some of this research, that might have been as rational a way as any to reach a decision.
38、38. It is really difficult to tell if assisted living is better than a nursing home.
A、A
B、B
C、C
D、D
E、E
F、F
G、G
H、H
I、I
J、J
K、K
L、L
M、M
N、N
Finding the Right Home—and Contentment, Too
【A】When your elderly relative needs to enter some sort of long-term care facility—a moment few parents or children approach without fear—what you would like is to have everything made clear.
【B】Does assisted living really mark a great improvement over a nursing home, or has the industry simply hired better interior designers? Are nursing homes as bad as people fear, or is that an out-moded stereotype (固定看法)? Can doing one’s homework really steer families to the best places? It is genuinely hard to know.
【C】I am about to make things more complicated by suggesting that what kind of facility an older person lives in may matter less than we have assumed. And that the characteristics adult children look for when they begin the search are not necessarily the things that make a difference to the people who are going to move in. I am not talking about the quality of care, let me hastily add. Nobody flourishes in a gloomy environment with irresponsible staff and a poor safety record. But an accumulating body of research indicates that some distinctions between one type of elder care and another have little real bearing on how well residents do.
【D】The most recent of these studies, published in The journal of Applied Gerontology, surveyed 150 Connecticut residents of assisted living, nursing homes and smaller residential care homes (known in some states as board and care homes or adult care homes). Researchers from the University of Connecticut Health Center asked the residents a large number of questions about their quality of life, emotional well-being and social interaction, as well as about the quality of the facilities.
【E】“We thought we would see differences based on the housing types,” said the lead author of the study, Julie Robison, an associate professor of medicine at the university. A reasonable assumption—don’t families struggle to avoid nursing homes and suffer real guilt if they can’t?
【F】In the initial results, assisted living residents did paint the most positive picture. They were less likely to report symptoms of depression than those in the other facilities, for instance, and less likely to be bored or lonely. They scored higher on social interaction.
【G】But when the researchers plugged in a number of other variables, such differences disappeared. It is not the housing type, they found, that creates differences in residents’ responses. “It is the characteristics of the specific environment they are in, combined with their own personal characteristics—how healthy they feel they are, their age and marital status,” Dr. Robison explained. Whether residents felt involved in the decision to move and how long they had lived there also proved significant.
【H】An elderly person who describes herself as in poor health, therefore, might be no less depressed in assisted living (even if her children preferred it) than in a nursing home. A person who bad input into where he would move and has had time to adapt to it might do as well in a nursing home as in a small residential care home, other factors being equal. It is an interaction between the person and the place, not the sort of place in itself, that leads to better or worse experiences. “You can’t just say, ‘Let’s put this person in a residential care home instead of a nursing home—she will be much better off,” Dr. Robison said. What matters, she added, “is a combination of what people bring in with them, and what they find there.”
【I】Such findings, which run counter to common sense, have surfaced before. In a multi-state study of assisted living, for instance, University of North Carolina researchers found that a host of variables—the facility’s type, size or age; whether a chain owned it; how attractive the neighborhood was—had no significant relationship to how the residents fared in terms of illness, mental decline, hospitalizations or mortality. What mattered most was the residents’ physical health and mental status. What people were like when they came in had greater consequence than what happened one they were there.
【J】As I was considering all this, a press release from a respected research firm crossed my desk, announcing that the five-star rating system that Medicare developed in 2008 to help families compare nursing home quality also has little relationship to how satisfied its residents or their family members are. As a matter of fact, consumers expressed higher satisfaction with the one-star facilities, the lowest rated, than with the five-star ones. (More on this study and the star ratings will appear in a subsequent post.)
【K】Before we collectively tear our hair out—how are we supposed to find our way in a landscape this confusing?—here is a thought from Dr. Philip Sloane, a geriatrician（老年病学专家）at the University of North Carolina：“In a way, that could be liberating for families.”
【L】Of course, sons and daughters want to visit the facilities, talk to the administrators and residents and other families, and do everything possible to fulfill their duties. But perhaps they don’t have to turn themselves into private investigators or Congressional subcommittees. “Families can look a bit more for where the residents are going to be happy,” Dr. Sloane said. And involving the future resident in the process can be very important.
【M】We all have our own ideas about what would bring our parents happiness. They have their ideas, too. A friend recently took her mother to visit an expensive assisted living/nursing home near my town. I have seen this place—it is elegant, inside and out. But nobody greeted the daughter and mother when they arrived, though the visit had been planned; nobody introduced them to the other residents. When they had lunch in the dining room, they sat alone at a table.
【N】The daughter feared her mother would be ignored there, and so she decided to move her into a more welcoming facility. Based on what is emerging from some of this research, that might have been as rational a way as any to reach a decision.
39、39. How a resident feels depends on an interaction between themselves and the care facility they live in.
A、A
B、B
C、C
D、D
E、E
F、F
G、G
H、H
I、I
J、J
K、K
L、L
M、M
N、N
Finding the Right Home—and Contentment, Too
【A】When your elderly relative needs to enter some sort of long-term care facility—a moment few parents or children approach without fear—what you would like is to have everything made clear.
【B】Does assisted living really mark a great improvement over a nursing home, or has the industry simply hired better interior designers? Are nursing homes as bad as people fear, or is that an out-moded stereotype (固定看法)? Can doing one’s homework really steer families to the best places? It is genuinely hard to know.
【C】I am about to make things more complicated by suggesting that what kind of facility an older person lives in may matter less than we have assumed. And that the characteristics adult children look for when they begin the search are not necessarily the things that make a difference to the people who are going to move in. I am not talking about the quality of care, let me hastily add. Nobody flourishes in a gloomy environment with irresponsible staff and a poor safety record. But an accumulating body of research indicates that some distinctions between one type of elder care and another have little real bearing on how well residents do.
【D】The most recent of these studies, published in The journal of Applied Gerontology, surveyed 150 Connecticut residents of assisted living, nursing homes and smaller residential care homes (known in some states as board and care homes or adult care homes). Researchers from the University of Connecticut Health Center asked the residents a large number of questions about their quality of life, emotional well-being and social interaction, as well as about the quality of the facilities.
【E】“We thought we would see differences based on the housing types,” said the lead author of the study, Julie Robison, an associate professor of medicine at the university. A reasonable assumption—don’t families struggle to avoid nursing homes and suffer real guilt if they can’t?
【F】In the initial results, assisted living residents did paint the most positive picture. They were less likely to report symptoms of depression than those in the other facilities, for instance, and less likely to be bored or lonely. They scored higher on social interaction.
【G】But when the researchers plugged in a number of other variables, such differences disappeared. It is not the housing type, they found, that creates differences in residents’ responses. “It is the characteristics of the specific environment they are in, combined with their own personal characteristics—how healthy they feel they are, their age and marital status,” Dr. Robison explained. Whether residents felt involved in the decision to move and how long they had lived there also proved significant.
【H】An elderly person who describes herself as in poor health, therefore, might be no less depressed in assisted living (even if her children preferred it) than in a nursing home. A person who bad input into where he would move and has had time to adapt to it might do as well in a nursing home as in a small residential care home, other factors being equal. It is an interaction between the person and the place, not the sort of place in itself, that leads to better or worse experiences. “You can’t just say, ‘Let’s put this person in a residential care home instead of a nursing home—she will be much better off,” Dr. Robison said. What matters, she added, “is a combination of what people bring in with them, and what they find there.”
【I】Such findings, which run counter to common sense, have surfaced before. In a multi-state study of assisted living, for instance, University of North Carolina researchers found that a host of variables—the facility’s type, size or age; whether a chain owned it; how attractive the neighborhood was—had no significant relationship to how the residents fared in terms of illness, mental decline, hospitalizations or mortality. What mattered most was the residents’ physical health and mental status. What people were like when they came in had greater consequence than what happened one they were there.
【J】As I was considering all this, a press release from a respected research firm crossed my desk, announcing that the five-star rating system that Medicare developed in 2008 to help families compare nursing home quality also has little relationship to how satisfied its residents or their family members are. As a matter of fact, consumers expressed higher satisfaction with the one-star facilities, the lowest rated, than with the five-star ones. (More on this study and the star ratings will appear in a subsequent post.)
【K】Before we collectively tear our hair out—how are we supposed to find our way in a landscape this confusing?—here is a thought from Dr. Philip Sloane, a geriatrician（老年病学专家）at the University of North Carolina：“In a way, that could be liberating for families.”
【L】Of course, sons and daughters want to visit the facilities, talk to the administrators and residents and other families, and do everything possible to fulfill their duties. But perhaps they don’t have to turn themselves into private investigators or Congressional subcommittees. “Families can look a bit more for where the residents are going to be happy,” Dr. Sloane said. And involving the future resident in the process can be very important.
【M】We all have our own ideas about what would bring our parents happiness. They have their ideas, too. A friend recently took her mother to visit an expensive assisted living/nursing home near my town. I have seen this place—it is elegant, inside and out. But nobody greeted the daughter and mother when they arrived, though the visit had been planned; nobody introduced them to the other residents. When they had lunch in the dining room, they sat alone at a table.
【N】The daughter feared her mother would be ignored there, and so she decided to move her into a more welcoming facility. Based on what is emerging from some of this research, that might have been as rational a way as any to reach a decision.
40、40. The author thinks her friend made a rational decision in choosing a more hospitable place over an apparently elegant assisted living home.
A、A
B、B
C、C
D、D
E、E
F、F
G、G
H、H
I、I
J、J
K、K
L、L
M、M
N、N
Finding the Right Home—and Contentment, Too
【A】When your elderly relative needs to enter some sort of long-term care facility—a moment few parents or children approach without fear—what you would like is to have everything made clear.
【B】Does assisted living really mark a great improvement over a nursing home, or has the industry simply hired better interior designers? Are nursing homes as bad as people fear, or is that an out-moded stereotype (固定看法)? Can doing one’s homework really steer families to the best places? It is genuinely hard to know.
【C】I am about to make things more complicated by suggesting that what kind of facility an older person lives in may matter less than we have assumed. And that the characteristics adult children look for when they begin the search are not necessarily the things that make a difference to the people who are going to move in. I am not talking about the quality of care, let me hastily add. Nobody flourishes in a gloomy environment with irresponsible staff and a poor safety record. But an accumulating body of research indicates that some distinctions between one type of elder care and another have little real bearing on how well residents do.
【D】The most recent of these studies, published in The journal of Applied Gerontology, surveyed 150 Connecticut residents of assisted living, nursing homes and smaller residential care homes (known in some states as board and care homes or adult care homes). Researchers from the University of Connecticut Health Center asked the residents a large number of questions about their quality of life, emotional well-being and social interaction, as well as about the quality of the facilities.
【E】“We thought we would see differences based on the housing types,” said the lead author of the study, Julie Robison, an associate professor of medicine at the university. A reasonable assumption—don’t families struggle to avoid nursing homes and suffer real guilt if they can’t?
【F】In the initial results, assisted living residents did paint the most positive picture. They were less likely to report symptoms of depression than those in the other facilities, for instance, and less likely to be bored or lonely. They scored higher on social interaction.
【G】But when the researchers plugged in a number of other variables, such differences disappeared. It is not the housing type, they found, that creates differences in residents’ responses. “It is the characteristics of the specific environment they are in, combined with their own personal characteristics—how healthy they feel they are, their age and marital status,” Dr. Robison explained. Whether residents felt involved in the decision to move and how long they had lived there also proved significant.
【H】An elderly person who describes herself as in poor health, therefore, might be no less depressed in assisted living (even if her children preferred it) than in a nursing home. A person who bad input into where he would move and has had time to adapt to it might do as well in a nursing home as in a small residential care home, other factors being equal. It is an interaction between the person and the place, not the sort of place in itself, that leads to better or worse experiences. “You can’t just say, ‘Let’s put this person in a residential care home instead of a nursing home—she will be much better off,” Dr. Robison said. What matters, she added, “is a combination of what people bring in with them, and what they find there.”
【I】Such findings, which run counter to common sense, have surfaced before. In a multi-state study of assisted living, for instance, University of North Carolina researchers found that a host of variables—the facility’s type, size or age; whether a chain owned it; how attractive the neighborhood was—had no significant relationship to how the residents fared in terms of illness, mental decline, hospitalizations or mortality. What mattered most was the residents’ physical health and mental status. What people were like when they came in had greater consequence than what happened one they were there.
【J】As I was considering all this, a press release from a respected research firm crossed my desk, announcing that the five-star rating system that Medicare developed in 2008 to help families compare nursing home quality also has little relationship to how satisfied its residents or their family members are. As a matter of fact, consumers expressed higher satisfaction with the one-star facilities, the lowest rated, than with the five-star ones. (More on this study and the star ratings will appear in a subsequent post.)
【K】Before we collectively tear our hair out—how are we supposed to find our way in a landscape this confusing?—here is a thought from Dr. Philip Sloane, a geriatrician（老年病学专家）at the University of North Carolina：“In a way, that could be liberating for families.”
【L】Of course, sons and daughters want to visit the facilities, talk to the administrators and residents and other families, and do everything possible to fulfill their duties. But perhaps they don’t have to turn themselves into private investigators or Congressional subcommittees. “Families can look a bit more for where the residents are going to be happy,” Dr. Sloane said. And involving the future resident in the process can be very important.
【M】We all have our own ideas about what would bring our parents happiness. They have their ideas, too. A friend recently took her mother to visit an expensive assisted living/nursing home near my town. I have seen this place—it is elegant, inside and out. But nobody greeted the daughter and mother when they arrived, though the visit had been planned; nobody introduced them to the other residents. When they had lunch in the dining room, they sat alone at a table.
【N】The daughter feared her mother would be ignored there, and so she decided to move her into a more welcoming facility. Based on what is emerging from some of this research, that might have been as rational a way as any to reach a decision.
41、41. The system Medicare developed to rate nursing home quality is of little help to finding a satisfactory place.
A、A
B、B
C、C
D、D
E、E
F、F
G、G
H、H
I、I
J、J
K、K
L、L
M、M
N、N
Finding the Right Home—and Contentment, Too
【A】When your elderly relative needs to enter some sort of long-term care facility—a moment few parents or children approach without fear—what you would like is to have everything made clear.
【B】Does assisted living really mark a great improvement over a nursing home, or has the industry simply hired better interior designers? Are nursing homes as bad as people fear, or is that an out-moded stereotype (固定看法)? Can doing one’s homework really steer families to the best places? It is genuinely hard to know.
【C】I am about to make things more complicated by suggesting that what kind of facility an older person lives in may matter less than we have assumed. And that the characteristics adult children look for when they begin the search are not necessarily the things that make a difference to the people who are going to move in. I am not talking about the quality of care, let me hastily add. Nobody flourishes in a gloomy environment with irresponsible staff and a poor safety record. But an accumulating body of research indicates that some distinctions between one type of elder care and another have little real bearing on how well residents do.
【D】The most recent of these studies, published in The journal of Applied Gerontology, surveyed 150 Connecticut residents of assisted living, nursing homes and smaller residential care homes (known in some states as board and care homes or adult care homes). Researchers from the University of Connecticut Health Center asked the residents a large number of questions about their quality of life, emotional well-being and social interaction, as well as about the quality of the facilities.
【E】“We thought we would see differences based on the housing types,” said the lead author of the study, Julie Robison, an associate professor of medicine at the university. A reasonable assumption—don’t families struggle to avoid nursing homes and suffer real guilt if they can’t?
【F】In the initial results, assisted living residents did paint the most positive picture. They were less likely to report symptoms of depression than those in the other facilities, for instance, and less likely to be bored or lonely. They scored higher on social interaction.
【G】But when the researchers plugged in a number of other variables, such differences disappeared. It is not the housing type, they found, that creates differences in residents’ responses. “It is the characteristics of the specific environment they are in, combined with their own personal characteristics—how healthy they feel they are, their age and marital status,” Dr. Robison explained. Whether residents felt involved in the decision to move and how long they had lived there also proved significant.
【H】An elderly person who describes herself as in poor health, therefore, might be no less depressed in assisted living (even if her children preferred it) than in a nursing home. A person who bad input into where he would move and has had time to adapt to it might do as well in a nursing home as in a small residential care home, other factors being equal. It is an interaction between the person and the place, not the sort of place in itself, that leads to better or worse experiences. “You can’t just say, ‘Let’s put this person in a residential care home instead of a nursing home—she will be much better off,” Dr. Robison said. What matters, she added, “is a combination of what people bring in with them, and what they find there.”
【I】Such findings, which run counter to common sense, have surfaced before. In a multi-state study of assisted living, for instance, University of North Carolina researchers found that a host of variables—the facility’s type, size or age; whether a chain owned it; how attractive the neighborhood was—had no significant relationship to how the residents fared in terms of illness, mental decline, hospitalizations or mortality. What mattered most was the residents’ physical health and mental status. What people were like when they came in had greater consequence than what happened one they were there.
【J】As I was considering all this, a press release from a respected research firm crossed my desk, announcing that the five-star rating system that Medicare developed in 2008 to help families compare nursing home quality also has little relationship to how satisfied its residents or their family members are. As a matter of fact, consumers expressed higher satisfaction with the one-star facilities, the lowest rated, than with the five-star ones. (More on this study and the star ratings will appear in a subsequent post.)
【K】Before we collectively tear our hair out—how are we supposed to find our way in a landscape this confusing?—here is a thought from Dr. Philip Sloane, a geriatrician（老年病学专家）at the University of North Carolina：“In a way, that could be liberating for families.”
【L】Of course, sons and daughters want to visit the facilities, talk to the administrators and residents and other families, and do everything possible to fulfill their duties. But perhaps they don’t have to turn themselves into private investigators or Congressional subcommittees. “Families can look a bit more for where the residents are going to be happy,” Dr. Sloane said. And involving the future resident in the process can be very important.
【M】We all have our own ideas about what would bring our parents happiness. They have their ideas, too. A friend recently took her mother to visit an expensive assisted living/nursing home near my town. I have seen this place—it is elegant, inside and out. But nobody greeted the daughter and mother when they arrived, though the visit had been planned; nobody introduced them to the other residents. When they had lunch in the dining room, they sat alone at a table.
【N】The daughter feared her mother would be ignored there, and so she decided to move her into a more welcoming facility. Based on what is emerging from some of this research, that might have been as rational a way as any to reach a decision.
42、42. At first the researchers of the most recent study found residents in assisted living facilities gave higher scores on social interaction.
A、A
B、B
C、C
D、D
E、E
F、F
G、G
H、H
I、I
J、J
K、K
L、L
M、M
N、N
Finding the Right Home—and Contentment, Too
【A】When your elderly relative needs to enter some sort of long-term care facility—a moment few parents or children approach without fear—what you would like is to have everything made clear.
【B】Does assisted living really mark a great improvement over a nursing home, or has the industry simply hired better interior designers? Are nursing homes as bad as people fear, or is that an out-moded stereotype (固定看法)? Can doing one’s homework really steer families to the best places? It is genuinely hard to know.
【C】I am about to make things more complicated by suggesting that what kind of facility an older person lives in may matter less than we have assumed. And that the characteristics adult children look for when they begin the search are not necessarily the things that make a difference to the people who are going to move in. I am not talking about the quality of care, let me hastily add. Nobody flourishes in a gloomy environment with irresponsible staff and a poor safety record. But an accumulating body of research indicates that some distinctions between one type of elder care and another have little real bearing on how well residents do.
【D】The most recent of these studies, published in The journal of Applied Gerontology, surveyed 150 Connecticut residents of assisted living, nursing homes and smaller residential care homes (known in some states as board and care homes or adult care homes). Researchers from the University of Connecticut Health Center asked the residents a large number of questions about their quality of life, emotional well-being and social interaction, as well as about the quality of the facilities.
【E】“We thought we would see differences based on the housing types,” said the lead author of the study, Julie Robison, an associate professor of medicine at the university. A reasonable assumption—don’t families struggle to avoid nursing homes and suffer real guilt if they can’t?
【F】In the initial results, assisted living residents did paint the most positive picture. They were less likely to report symptoms of depression than those in the other facilities, for instance, and less likely to be bored or lonely. They scored higher on social interaction.
【G】But when the researchers plugged in a number of other variables, such differences disappeared. It is not the housing type, they found, that creates differences in residents’ responses. “It is the characteristics of the specific environment they are in, combined with their own personal characteristics—how healthy they feel they are, their age and marital status,” Dr. Robison explained. Whether residents felt involved in the decision to move and how long they had lived there also proved significant.
【H】An elderly person who describes herself as in poor health, therefore, might be no less depressed in assisted living (even if her children preferred it) than in a nursing home. A person who bad input into where he would move and has had time to adapt to it might do as well in a nursing home as in a small residential care home, other factors being equal. It is an interaction between the person and the place, not the sort of place in itself, that leads to better or worse experiences. “You can’t just say, ‘Let’s put this person in a residential care home instead of a nursing home—she will be much better off,” Dr. Robison said. What matters, she added, “is a combination of what people bring in with them, and what they find there.”
【I】Such findings, which run counter to common sense, have surfaced before. In a multi-state study of assisted living, for instance, University of North Carolina researchers found that a host of variables—the facility’s type, size or age; whether a chain owned it; how attractive the neighborhood was—had no significant relationship to how the residents fared in terms of illness, mental decline, hospitalizations or mortality. What mattered most was the residents’ physical health and mental status. What people were like when they came in had greater consequence than what happened one they were there.
【J】As I was considering all this, a press release from a respected research firm crossed my desk, announcing that the five-star rating system that Medicare developed in 2008 to help families compare nursing home quality also has little relationship to how satisfied its residents or their family members are. As a matter of fact, consumers expressed higher satisfaction with the one-star facilities, the lowest rated, than with the five-star ones. (More on this study and the star ratings will appear in a subsequent post.)
【K】Before we collectively tear our hair out—how are we supposed to find our way in a landscape this confusing?—here is a thought from Dr. Philip Sloane, a geriatrician（老年病学专家）at the University of North Carolina：“In a way, that could be liberating for families.”
【L】Of course, sons and daughters want to visit the facilities, talk to the administrators and residents and other families, and do everything possible to fulfill their duties. But perhaps they don’t have to turn themselves into private investigators or Congressional subcommittees. “Families can look a bit more for where the residents are going to be happy,” Dr. Sloane said. And involving the future resident in the process can be very important.
【M】We all have our own ideas about what would bring our parents happiness. They have their ideas, too. A friend recently took her mother to visit an expensive assisted living/nursing home near my town. I have seen this place—it is elegant, inside and out. But nobody greeted the daughter and mother when they arrived, though the visit had been planned; nobody introduced them to the other residents. When they had lunch in the dining room, they sat alone at a table.
【N】The daughter feared her mother would be ignored there, and so she decided to move her into a more welcoming facility. Based on what is emerging from some of this research, that might have been as rational a way as any to reach a decision.
43、43. What kind of care facility old people live in may be less important than we think.
A、A
B、B
C、C
D、D
E、E
F、F
G、G
H、H
I、I
J、J
K、K
L、L
M、M
N、N
Finding the Right Home—and Contentment, Too
【A】When your elderly relative needs to enter some sort of long-term care facility—a moment few parents or children approach without fear—what you would like is to have everything made clear.
【B】Does assisted living really mark a great improvement over a nursing home, or has the industry simply hired better interior designers? Are nursing homes as bad as people fear, or is that an out-moded stereotype (固定看法)? Can doing one’s homework really steer families to the best places? It is genuinely hard to know.
【C】I am about to make things more complicated by suggesting that what kind of facility an older person lives in may matter less than we have assumed. And that the characteristics adult children look for when they begin the search are not necessarily the things that make a difference to the people who are going to move in. I am not talking about the quality of care, let me hastily add. Nobody flourishes in a gloomy environment with irresponsible staff and a poor safety record. But an accumulating body of research indicates that some distinctions between one type of elder care and another have little real bearing on how well residents do.
【D】The most recent of these studies, published in The journal of Applied Gerontology, surveyed 150 Connecticut residents of assisted living, nursing homes and smaller residential care homes (known in some states as board and care homes or adult care homes). Researchers from the University of Connecticut Health Center asked the residents a large number of questions about their quality of life, emotional well-being and social interaction, as well as about the quality of the facilities.
【E】“We thought we would see differences based on the housing types,” said the lead author of the study, Julie Robison, an associate professor of medicine at the university. A reasonable assumption—don’t families struggle to avoid nursing homes and suffer real guilt if they can’t?
【F】In the initial results, assisted living residents did paint the most positive picture. They were less likely to report symptoms of depression than those in the other facilities, for instance, and less likely to be bored or lonely. They scored higher on social interaction.
【G】But when the researchers plugged in a number of other variables, such differences disappeared. It is not the housing type, they found, that creates differences in residents’ responses. “It is the characteristics of the specific environment they are in, combined with their own personal characteristics—how healthy they feel they are, their age and marital status,” Dr. Robison explained. Whether residents felt involved in the decision to move and how long they had lived there also proved significant.
【H】An elderly person who describes herself as in poor health, therefore, might be no less depressed in assisted living (even if her children preferred it) than in a nursing home. A person who bad input into where he would move and has had time to adapt to it might do as well in a nursing home as in a small residential care home, other factors being equal. It is an interaction between the person and the place, not the sort of place in itself, that leads to better or worse experiences. “You can’t just say, ‘Let’s put this person in a residential care home instead of a nursing home—she will be much better off,” Dr. Robison said. What matters, she added, “is a combination of what people bring in with them, and what they find there.”
【I】Such findings, which run counter to common sense, have surfaced before. In a multi-state study of assisted living, for instance, University of North Carolina researchers found that a host of variables—the facility’s type, size or age; whether a chain owned it; how attractive the neighborhood was—had no significant relationship to how the residents fared in terms of illness, mental decline, hospitalizations or mortality. What mattered most was the residents’ physical health and mental status. What people were like when they came in had greater consequence than what happened one they were there.
【J】As I was considering all this, a press release from a respected research firm crossed my desk, announcing that the five-star rating system that Medicare developed in 2008 to help families compare nursing home quality also has little relationship to how satisfied its residents or their family members are. As a matter of fact, consumers expressed higher satisfaction with the one-star facilities, the lowest rated, than with the five-star ones. (More on this study and the star ratings will appear in a subsequent post.)
【K】Before we collectively tear our hair out—how are we supposed to find our way in a landscape this confusing?—here is a thought from Dr. Philip Sloane, a geriatrician（老年病学专家）at the University of North Carolina：“In a way, that could be liberating for families.”
【L】Of course, sons and daughters want to visit the facilities, talk to the administrators and residents and other families, and do everything possible to fulfill their duties. But perhaps they don’t have to turn themselves into private investigators or Congressional subcommittees. “Families can look a bit more for where the residents are going to be happy,” Dr. Sloane said. And involving the future resident in the process can be very important.
【M】We all have our own ideas about what would bring our parents happiness. They have their ideas, too. A friend recently took her mother to visit an expensive assisted living/nursing home near my town. I have seen this place—it is elegant, inside and out. But nobody greeted the daughter and mother when they arrived, though the visit had been planned; nobody introduced them to the other residents. When they had lunch in the dining room, they sat alone at a table.
【N】The daughter feared her mother would be ignored there, and so she decided to move her into a more welcoming facility. Based on what is emerging from some of this research, that might have been as rational a way as any to reach a decision.
44、44. The findings of the latest research were similar to an earlier multi-state study of assisted living.
A、A
B、B
C、C
D、D
E、E
F、F
G、G
H、H
I、I
J、J
K、K
L、L
M、M
N、N
Finding the Right Home—and Contentment, Too
【A】When your elderly relative needs to enter some sort of long-term care facility—a moment few parents or children approach without fear—what you would like is to have everything made clear.
【B】Does assisted living really mark a great improvement over a nursing home, or has the industry simply hired better interior designers? Are nursing homes as bad as people fear, or is that an out-moded stereotype (固定看法)? Can doing one’s homework really steer families to the best places? It is genuinely hard to know.
【C】I am about to make things more complicated by suggesting that what kind of facility an older person lives in may matter less than we have assumed. And that the characteristics adult children look for when they begin the search are not necessarily the things that make a difference to the people who are going to move in. I am not talking about the quality of care, let me hastily add. Nobody flourishes in a gloomy environment with irresponsible staff and a poor safety record. But an accumulating body of research indicates that some distinctions between one type of elder care and another have little real bearing on how well residents do.
【D】The most recent of these studies, published in The journal of Applied Gerontology, surveyed 150 Connecticut residents of assisted living, nursing homes and smaller residential care homes (known in some states as board and care homes or adult care homes). Researchers from the University of Connecticut Health Center asked the residents a large number of questions about their quality of life, emotional well-being and social interaction, as well as about the quality of the facilities.
【E】“We thought we would see differences based on the housing types,” said the lead author of the study, Julie Robison, an associate professor of medicine at the university. A reasonable assumption—don’t families struggle to avoid nursing homes and suffer real guilt if they can’t?
【F】In the initial results, assisted living residents did paint the most positive picture. They were less likely to report symptoms of depression than those in the other facilities, for instance, and less likely to be bored or lonely. They scored higher on social interaction.
【G】But when the researchers plugged in a number of other variables, such differences disappeared. It is not the housing type, they found, that creates differences in residents’ responses. “It is the characteristics of the specific environment they are in, combined with their own personal characteristics—how healthy they feel they are, their age and marital status,” Dr. Robison explained. Whether residents felt involved in the decision to move and how long they had lived there also proved significant.
【H】An elderly person who describes herself as in poor health, therefore, might be no less depressed in assisted living (even if her children preferred it) than in a nursing home. A person who bad input into where he would move and has had time to adapt to it might do as well in a nursing home as in a small residential care home, other factors being equal. It is an interaction between the person and the place, not the sort of place in itself, that leads to better or worse experiences. “You can’t just say, ‘Let’s put this person in a residential care home instead of a nursing home—she will be much better off,” Dr. Robison said. What matters, she added, “is a combination of what people bring in with them, and what they find there.”
【I】Such findings, which run counter to common sense, have surfaced before. In a multi-state study of assisted living, for instance, University of North Carolina researchers found that a host of variables—the facility’s type, size or age; whether a chain owned it; how attractive the neighborhood was—had no significant relationship to how the residents fared in terms of illness, mental decline, hospitalizations or mortality. What mattered most was the residents’ physical health and mental status. What people were like when they came in had greater consequence than what happened one they were there.
【J】As I was considering all this, a press release from a respected research firm crossed my desk, announcing that the five-star rating system that Medicare developed in 2008 to help families compare nursing home quality also has little relationship to how satisfied its residents or their family members are. As a matter of fact, consumers expressed higher satisfaction with the one-star facilities, the lowest rated, than with the five-star ones. (More on this study and the star ratings will appear in a subsequent post.)
【K】Before we collectively tear our hair out—how are we supposed to find our way in a landscape this confusing?—here is a thought from Dr. Philip Sloane, a geriatrician（老年病学专家）at the University of North Carolina：“In a way, that could be liberating for families.”
【L】Of course, sons and daughters want to visit the facilities, talk to the administrators and residents and other families, and do everything possible to fulfill their duties. But perhaps they don’t have to turn themselves into private investigators or Congressional subcommittees. “Families can look a bit more for where the residents are going to be happy,” Dr. Sloane said. And involving the future resident in the process can be very important.
【M】We all have our own ideas about what would bring our parents happiness. They have their ideas, too. A friend recently took her mother to visit an expensive assisted living/nursing home near my town. I have seen this place—it is elegant, inside and out. But nobody greeted the daughter and mother when they arrived, though the visit had been planned; nobody introduced them to the other residents. When they had lunch in the dining room, they sat alone at a table.
【N】The daughter feared her mother would be ignored there, and so she decided to move her into a more welcoming facility. Based on what is emerging from some of this research, that might have been as rational a way as any to reach a decision.
45、45. A resident’s satisfaction with a care facility has much to do with whether they had participated in the decision to move in and how long they had stayed there.
A、A
B、B
C、C
D、D
E、E
F、F
G、G
H、H
I、I
J、J
K、K
L、L
M、M
N、N
As Artificial Intelligence (AI) becomes increasingly sophisticated, there are growing concerns that robots could become a threat. This danger can be avoided, according to computer science professor Stuart Russell, if we figure out how to turn human values into a programmable code.
Russell argues that as robots take on more complicated tasks, it’s necessary to translate our morals into AI language.
For example, if a robot does chores around the house, you wouldn’t want it to put the pet cat in the oven to make dinner for the hungry children. “You would want that robot preloaded with a good set of values,” said Russell.
Some robots are already programmed with basic human values. For example, mobile robots have been programmed to keep a comfortable distance from humans. Obviously there are cultural differences, but if you were talking to another person and they came up close in your personal space, you wouldn’t think that's the kind of thing a properly brought-up person would do.
It will be possible to create more sophisticated moral machines, if only we can find a way to set out human values as clear rules.
Robots could also learn values from drawing patterns from large sets of data on human behavior. They are dangerous only if programmers are careless.
The biggest concern with robots going against human values is that human beings fail to do sufficient testing and they’ve produced a system that will break some kind of taboo(禁忌).
One simple check would be to program a robot to check the correct course of action with a human when presented with an unusual situation.
If the robot is unsure whether an animal is suitable for the microwave, it has the opportune to stop, send out beeps(嘟嘟声), and ask for directions from a human. If we humans aren’t quite sure about a decision, we go and ask somebody else.
The most difficult step in programming values will be deciding exactly what we believe a moral, and how to create a set of ethical rules. But if we come up with an answer, robots could be good for humanity.
46、46. What does the author say about the threat of robots?
A、It may constitute a challenge to computer programmers.
B、It accompanies all machinery involving high technology.
C、It can be avoided if human values are translated into their language.
D、It has become an inevitable peril as technology gets more sophisticated.
As Artificial Intelligence (AI) becomes increasingly sophisticated, there are growing concerns that robots could become a threat. This danger can be avoided, according to computer science professor Stuart Russell, if we figure out how to turn human values into a programmable code.
Russell argues that as robots take on more complicated tasks, it’s necessary to translate our morals into AI language.
For example, if a robot does chores around the house, you wouldn’t want it to put the pet cat in the oven to make dinner for the hungry children. “You would want that robot preloaded with a good set of values,” said Russell.
Some robots are already programmed with basic human values. For example, mobile robots have been programmed to keep a comfortable distance from humans. Obviously there are cultural differences, but if you were talking to another person and they came up close in your personal space, you wouldn’t think that's the kind of thing a properly brought-up person would do.
It will be possible to create more sophisticated moral machines, if only we can find a way to set out human values as clear rules.
Robots could also learn values from drawing patterns from large sets of data on human behavior. They are dangerous only if programmers are careless.
The biggest concern with robots going against human values is that human beings fail to do sufficient testing and they’ve produced a system that will break some kind of taboo(禁忌).
One simple check would be to program a robot to check the correct course of action with a human when presented with an unusual situation.
If the robot is unsure whether an animal is suitable for the microwave, it has the opportune to stop, send out beeps(嘟嘟声), and ask for directions from a human. If we humans aren’t quite sure about a decision, we go and ask somebody else.
The most difficult step in programming values will be deciding exactly what we believe a moral, and how to create a set of ethical rules. But if we come up with an answer, robots could be good for humanity.
47、47. What would we think of a person who invades our personal space according to the author?
A、They are aggressive.
B、They are outgoing.
C、They are ignorant.
D、They are ill-bred.
As Artificial Intelligence (AI) becomes increasingly sophisticated, there are growing concerns that robots could become a threat. This danger can be avoided, according to computer science professor Stuart Russell, if we figure out how to turn human values into a programmable code.
Russell argues that as robots take on more complicated tasks, it’s necessary to translate our morals into AI language.
For example, if a robot does chores around the house, you wouldn’t want it to put the pet cat in the oven to make dinner for the hungry children. “You would want that robot preloaded with a good set of values,” said Russell.
Some robots are already programmed with basic human values. For example, mobile robots have been programmed to keep a comfortable distance from humans. Obviously there are cultural differences, but if you were talking to another person and they came up close in your personal space, you wouldn’t think that's the kind of thing a properly brought-up person would do.
It will be possible to create more sophisticated moral machines, if only we can find a way to set out human values as clear rules.
Robots could also learn values from drawing patterns from large sets of data on human behavior. They are dangerous only if programmers are careless.
The biggest concern with robots going against human values is that human beings fail to do sufficient testing and they’ve produced a system that will break some kind of taboo(禁忌).
One simple check would be to program a robot to check the correct course of action with a human when presented with an unusual situation.
If the robot is unsure whether an animal is suitable for the microwave, it has the opportune to stop, send out beeps(嘟嘟声), and ask for directions from a human. If we humans aren’t quite sure about a decision, we go and ask somebody else.
The most difficult step in programming values will be deciding exactly what we believe a moral, and how to create a set of ethical rules. But if we come up with an answer, robots could be good for humanity.
48、48. How do robots learn human values?
A、By interacting with human in everyday life situations.
B、By following the daily routines of civilized human beings.
C、By picking up patterns from massive data on human behavior.
D、By imitating the behavior of properly brought –up human beings.
As Artificial Intelligence (AI) becomes increasingly sophisticated, there are growing concerns that robots could become a threat. This danger can be avoided, according to computer science professor Stuart Russell, if we figure out how to turn human values into a programmable code.
Russell argues that as robots take on more complicated tasks, it’s necessary to translate our morals into AI language.
For example, if a robot does chores around the house, you wouldn’t want it to put the pet cat in the oven to make dinner for the hungry children. “You would want that robot preloaded with a good set of values,” said Russell.
Some robots are already programmed with basic human values. For example, mobile robots have been programmed to keep a comfortable distance from humans. Obviously there are cultural differences, but if you were talking to another person and they came up close in your personal space, you wouldn’t think that's the kind of thing a properly brought-up person would do.
It will be possible to create more sophisticated moral machines, if only we can find a way to set out human values as clear rules.
Robots could also learn values from drawing patterns from large sets of data on human behavior. They are dangerous only if programmers are careless.
The biggest concern with robots going against human values is that human beings fail to do sufficient testing and they’ve produced a system that will break some kind of taboo(禁忌).
One simple check would be to program a robot to check the correct course of action with a human when presented with an unusual situation.
If the robot is unsure whether an animal is suitable for the microwave, it has the opportune to stop, send out beeps(嘟嘟声), and ask for directions from a human. If we humans aren’t quite sure about a decision, we go and ask somebody else.
The most difficult step in programming values will be deciding exactly what we believe a moral, and how to create a set of ethical rules. But if we come up with an answer, robots could be good for humanity.
49、49. What will a well-programmed robot do when facing an unusual situation?
A、Keep a distance from possible dangers.
B、Stop to seek advice from a human being.
C、Trigger its built-in alarm system at once.
D、Do sufficient testing before taking action.
As Artificial Intelligence (AI) becomes increasingly sophisticated, there are growing concerns that robots could become a threat. This danger can be avoided, according to computer science professor Stuart Russell, if we figure out how to turn human values into a programmable code.
Russell argues that as robots take on more complicated tasks, it’s necessary to translate our morals into AI language.
For example, if a robot does chores around the house, you wouldn’t want it to put the pet cat in the oven to make dinner for the hungry children. “You would want that robot preloaded with a good set of values,” said Russell.
Some robots are already programmed with basic human values. For example, mobile robots have been programmed to keep a comfortable distance from humans. Obviously there are cultural differences, but if you were talking to another person and they came up close in your personal space, you wouldn’t think that's the kind of thing a properly brought-up person would do.
It will be possible to create more sophisticated moral machines, if only we can find a way to set out human values as clear rules.
Robots could also learn values from drawing patterns from large sets of data on human behavior. They are dangerous only if programmers are careless.
The biggest concern with robots going against human values is that human beings fail to do sufficient testing and they’ve produced a system that will break some kind of taboo(禁忌).
One simple check would be to program a robot to check the correct course of action with a human when presented with an unusual situation.
If the robot is unsure whether an animal is suitable for the microwave, it has the opportune to stop, send out beeps(嘟嘟声), and ask for directions from a human. If we humans aren’t quite sure about a decision, we go and ask somebody else.
The most difficult step in programming values will be deciding exactly what we believe a moral, and how to create a set of ethical rules. But if we come up with an answer, robots could be good for humanity.
50、50. What is most difficult to do when we turn human values into a programmable code?
A、Determine what is moral and ethical.
B、Design some large-scale experiments.
C、Set rules for man-machine interaction.
D、Develop a more sophisticated program.
Why do some people live to be older than others? You know the standard explanations: keeping a moderate diet, engaging in regular exercise, etc. But what effect does your personality on your longevity (长寿)? Do some kinds of personalities lead to longer lives? A new study in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society looked at this question by examining the personality characteristics of 246 children of people who had lived to be at least 100.
The study shows that those living the longest are more outgoing, more active and less neurotic (神经质的) than other people. Long-living women are also more likely to be sympathetic and cooperative than women with a normal life span. These findings are in agreement with what you would expect from the evolutionary theory: those who like to make friends and help others can gather enough resources to make it through tough times.
Interestingly, however, other characteristics that you might consider advantageous had no impact on whether study participants were likely to live longer. Those who were more self-disciplined, for instance, were no more likely to live to be very old. Also, being open to new ideas had no relationship to long life, which might explain all those bad-tempered old people who are fixed in their ways.
Whether you can successfully change your personality as an adult is the subject of a longstanding psychological debate. But the new paper suggests that if you want long life, you should strive to be as outgoing as possible.
Unfortunately, another recent study shows that your mother’s personality may also help determine your longevity. That study looked at nearly 28,000 Norwegian mothers and found that those moms who were more anxious, depressed and angry were more likely to feed their kids unhealthy diets.
Patterns of childhood eating can be hard to break when we're adults, which may mean that kids of depressed moms end up dying younger.
Personality isn’t destiny (命运), and everyone knows that individuals can learn to change. But both studies show that long life isn't just a matter of your physical health but of your mental health.
51、51. What does the author imply about outgoing and sympathetic people?
A、They have a good understanding of evolution.
B、They are better at negotiating an agreement.
C、They generally appear more resourceful.
D、They are more likely to get over hardship.
Why do some people live to be older than others? You know the standard explanations: keeping a moderate diet, engaging in regular exercise, etc. But what effect does your personality on your longevity (长寿)? Do some kinds of personalities lead to longer lives? A new study in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society looked at this question by examining the personality characteristics of 246 children of people who had lived to be at least 100.
The study shows that those living the longest are more outgoing, more active and less neurotic (神经质的) than other people. Long-living women are also more likely to be sympathetic and cooperative than women with a normal life span. These findings are in agreement with what you would expect from the evolutionary theory: those who like to make friends and help others can gather enough resources to make it through tough times.
Interestingly, however, other characteristics that you might consider advantageous had no impact on whether study participants were likely to live longer. Those who were more self-disciplined, for instance, were no more likely to live to be very old. Also, being open to new ideas had no relationship to long life, which might explain all those bad-tempered old people who are fixed in their ways.
Whether you can successfully change your personality as an adult is the subject of a longstanding psychological debate. But the new paper suggests that if you want long life, you should strive to be as outgoing as possible.
Unfortunately, another recent study shows that your mother’s personality may also help determine your longevity. That study looked at nearly 28,000 Norwegian mothers and found that those moms who were more anxious, depressed and angry were more likely to feed their kids unhealthy diets.
Patterns of childhood eating can be hard to break when we're adults, which may mean that kids of depressed moms end up dying younger.
Personality isn’t destiny (命运), and everyone knows that individuals can learn to change. But both studies show that long life isn't just a matter of your physical health but of your mental health.
52、52. The aim of the study in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society is _____.
A、to see whether people’s personality affects their life span
B、to find out if one’s lifestyle has any effect on their health
C、to investigate the role of exercise in living a long life
D、to examine all the factors contributing to longevity
Why do some people live to be older than others? You know the standard explanations: keeping a moderate diet, engaging in regular exercise, etc. But what effect does your personality on your longevity (长寿)? Do some kinds of personalities lead to longer lives? A new study in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society looked at this question by examining the personality characteristics of 246 children of people who had lived to be at least 100.
The study shows that those living the longest are more outgoing, more active and less neurotic (神经质的) than other people. Long-living women are also more likely to be sympathetic and cooperative than women with a normal life span. These findings are in agreement with what you would expect from the evolutionary theory: those who like to make friends and help others can gather enough resources to make it through tough times.
Interestingly, however, other characteristics that you might consider advantageous had no impact on whether study participants were likely to live longer. Those who were more self-disciplined, for instance, were no more likely to live to be very old. Also, being open to new ideas had no relationship to long life, which might explain all those bad-tempered old people who are fixed in their ways.
Whether you can successfully change your personality as an adult is the subject of a longstanding psychological debate. But the new paper suggests that if you want long life, you should strive to be as outgoing as possible.
Unfortunately, another recent study shows that your mother’s personality may also help determine your longevity. That study looked at nearly 28,000 Norwegian mothers and found that those moms who were more anxious, depressed and angry were more likely to feed their kids unhealthy diets.
Patterns of childhood eating can be hard to break when we're adults, which may mean that kids of depressed moms end up dying younger.
Personality isn’t destiny (命运), and everyone knows that individuals can learn to change. But both studies show that long life isn't just a matter of your physical health but of your mental health.
53、53. What finding of the study might prove somewhat out of our expectation?
A、Easy-going people can also live a relatively long life.
B、Personality characteristics that prove advantageous actually vary with times.
C、Such personality characteristics as self-discipline have no effect on longevity.
D、Readiness to accept new ideas helps one enjoy longevity.
Why do some people live to be older than others? You know the standard explanations: keeping a moderate diet, engaging in regular exercise, etc. But what effect does your personality on your longevity (长寿)? Do some kinds of personalities lead to longer lives? A new study in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society looked at this question by examining the personality characteristics of 246 children of people who had lived to be at least 100.
The study shows that those living the longest are more outgoing, more active and less neurotic (神经质的) than other people. Long-living women are also more likely to be sympathetic and cooperative than women with a normal life span. These findings are in agreement with what you would expect from the evolutionary theory: those who like to make friends and help others can gather enough resources to make it through tough times.
Interestingly, however, other characteristics that you might consider advantageous had no impact on whether study participants were likely to live longer. Those who were more self-disciplined, for instance, were no more likely to live to be very old. Also, being open to new ideas had no relationship to long life, which might explain all those bad-tempered old people who are fixed in their ways.
Whether you can successfully change your personality as an adult is the subject of a longstanding psychological debate. But the new paper suggests that if you want long life, you should strive to be as outgoing as possible.
Unfortunately, another recent study shows that your mother’s personality may also help determine your longevity. That study looked at nearly 28,000 Norwegian mothers and found that those moms who were more anxious, depressed and angry were more likely to feed their kids unhealthy diets.
Patterns of childhood eating can be hard to break when we're adults, which may mean that kids of depressed moms end up dying younger.
Personality isn’t destiny (命运), and everyone knows that individuals can learn to change. But both studies show that long life isn't just a matter of your physical health but of your mental health.
54、54. What does the recent study of Norwegian mothers show?
A、Children’s personality characteristics are invariably determined by their mothers.
B、People with unhealthy eating habits are likely to die sooner.
C、Mothers’ influence on children may last longer than fathers’.
D、Mothers’ negative personality characteristics may affect their children’s life spans.
Why do some people live to be older than others? You know the standard explanations: keeping a moderate diet, engaging in regular exercise, etc. But what effect does your personality on your longevity (长寿)? Do some kinds of personalities lead to longer lives? A new study in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society looked at this question by examining the personality characteristics of 246 children of people who had lived to be at least 100.
The study shows that those living the longest are more outgoing, more active and less neurotic (神经质的) than other people. Long-living women are also more likely to be sympathetic and cooperative than women with a normal life span. These findings are in agreement with what you would expect from the evolutionary theory: those who like to make friends and help others can gather enough resources to make it through tough times.
Interestingly, however, other characteristics that you might consider advantageous had no impact on whether study participants were likely to live longer. Those who were more self-disciplined, for instance, were no more likely to live to be very old. Also, being open to new ideas had no relationship to long life, which might explain all those bad-tempered old people who are fixed in their ways.
Whether you can successfully change your personality as an adult is the subject of a longstanding psychological debate. But the new paper suggests that if you want long life, you should strive to be as outgoing as possible.
Unfortunately, another recent study shows that your mother’s personality may also help determine your longevity. That study looked at nearly 28,000 Norwegian mothers and found that those moms who were more anxious, depressed and angry were more likely to feed their kids unhealthy diets.
Patterns of childhood eating can be hard to break when we're adults, which may mean that kids of depressed moms end up dying younger.
Personality isn’t destiny (命运), and everyone knows that individuals can learn to change. But both studies show that long life isn't just a matter of your physical health but of your mental health.
55、55. What can we learn from the findings of the two new studies?
A、Anxiety and depression more often than not cut short one’s life span.
B、Longevity results from a combination of mental and physical health.
C、Personality plays a decisive role in how healthy one is.
D、Health is in large part related to one’s lifestyle.
三、Part IV Translation
56、 功夫（Kung Fu）是中国武术（martial arts）的俗称。中国武术的起源可以追溯到自卫的需要，狩猎活动以及古代中国的军事训练。它是中国传统体育运动的一种，年轻人和老年人都练。它已逐渐演变成了中国文化的独特元素。作为中国的国宝，功夫有上百种不同的风格，是世界上练得最多的武术形式。有些风格模仿了动物的动作，还有一些则受到了中国哲学思想、神话和传说的启发。
参考答案：
普通版：Kung Fu is a common name of Chinese martial arts. The beginning of Chinese martial arts can date back to the needs of self-defense, hunting and ancient Chinese military training. It is one kind of the Chinese traditional sports and both the young and the old practice it. It has gradually become a special element of Chinese culture. As a national treasure of China, Kung Fu is the most practiced form of martial arts and has hundreds of different types. Some of the styles copy the animals’ movements, and others are inspired by Chinese philosophies, myths and legends.
高配版：Chinese martial arts are commonly known as Kung Fu, the origin of which can be traced back to the needs of self-defense, hunting and military training in ancient China. Being one kind of the Chinese traditional sports, it is always practiced by both the young and the old. It has gradually evolved into a unique element of Chinese culture. As a Chinese national treasure, Kung Fu is the most practiced form of martial arts, which has hundreds of different styles. Some of the styles imitate the movements of the animals and some are enlightened by Chinese philosophies, myths and legends.
四、Part I Writing
57、For this part，you are allowed 30 minutes to write a letter to express your thanks to one of your friends who helped you most when you were in difficulty. You should write at least 120 words but no more than 180 words.
参考答案：
Dear Cui Yuan,
Thank you so much for your help during those days when I was traveling in your city.（直接表明目的，表达感谢之情） I would not have known how to pass the last 9 days without your kind words to comfort me and your company to help me find my wallet back.
I still remember that day clearly when my luggage with all my personal belongings was lost while I was preparing to get off the train.（直接叙事，说明感谢的原因） I knew nothing about what I was going to do next because I was traveling alone at that time and my phone was gone with my luggage. I had no money, no friends and no cards including my ID card at that moment. You couldn’t even imagine how I felt after I was told by the station staff that I might not find my luggage back again. It was you who told me to calm down and went to the police station with me. You are like an angel to me and I really appreciate everything that you had done for me.
I would like to invite you to visit my hometown for a vacation and wish to see such a kind person like you again.（做出邀请） I am looking forward to your reply.
Sincerely,
Jenny
[译文]
亲爱的崔源：
很感谢我在你所居住的城市旅游时你所提供的帮助。如果没有你的安慰的话语和陪我找到钱包，我真不知道自己要如何度过那剩下的9天时间。
我仍然清楚地记得当我准备下火车时发现我装着所有随行物品的行李找不到的那一天。我不知道接下来要怎么做了。我这次是独自出来旅行而且我的电话和行李一起丢了。没有钱,没有朋友,没有卡，包括我的身份证。你甚至想象不到乘务员告诉我可能再也找不回我的行李时我的感受。是你安慰我要保持冷静，并和我一起去了警察局。你当时对我来说就像一个天使，让我很感激。
我想邀请你来我的家乡游玩，希望可以再次见到这么善良的你。我期待着你的回复。
真挚地，
珍妮
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