1、大学英语四级-262 及答案解析(总分：100.00，做题时间：90 分钟)一、Reading Comprehensio(总题数：0，分数：0.00)Reading Literature Makes Us Smarter and NicerA. Gregory Currie, a professor of philosophy at the University of Nottingham, recently argued in the New York Times that we ought not to claim that literature improves us as people
2、, because there is no “convincing evidence that suggests that people are morally or socially better for reading Tolstoy“ or other great books. B. Actually, there is such evidence. Raymond Mar, a psychologist at York University in Canada, and Keith Oatley, a retired professor of cognitive (认知的) psych
3、ology at the University of Toronto, reported in studies published in 2006 and 2009 that individuals who often read fiction appear to be better able to understand other people, empathize (有同感) with them and view the world from their perspective. This link persisted even after the researchers factored
4、 in the possibility that more empathetic individuals might choose to read more novels. A 2010 study by Mar found a similar result in young children: the more stories they had read to them, the keener their “theory of mind,“ or mental model of other people“s intentions. C. “Deep reading“as opposed to
5、 the often superficial reading we do on the Webis an endangered practice, one we ought to take steps to preserve as we would a historic building or a significant work of art. Its disappearance would cause damage to the intellectual and emotional development of generations growing up online, as well
6、as the perpetuation of a critical part of our culture: the novels, poems and other kinds of literature that can be appreciated only by readers whose brains, quite literally, have been trained to understand them. D. Recent research in cognitive science, psychology and neuroscience has demonstrated th
7、at deep readingslow, immersive, rich in sensory detail and emotional and moral complexityis a distinctive experience, different in kind from the mere understanding of words. Although deep reading does not, strictly speaking, require a conventional book, the built-in limits of the printed page are un
8、iquely beneficial to the deep reading experience. A book“s lack of hyperlinks (超链接), for example, frees the reader from making decisionsShould I click on this link or not?allowing her to remain fully focus on the narrative. E. That immersion is supported by the way the brain handles language rich in
9、 detail, implication and metaphor (暗喻): by creating a mental representation that draws on the same brain regions that would be active if the scene were displayed in real life. The emotional situations and moral dilemmas that are the stuff of literature are also vigorous exercise for the brain, promp
10、ting us inside the heads of fictional characters and even, studies suggest, increasing our real-life capacity for empathy. F. None of this is likely to happen when we“re visiting TMZ (美国名人消息网). Although we call the activity by the same name, the deep reading of books and the information-driven readi
11、ng we do on the Web are very different, both in the experience they produce and in the capacities they develop. A growing body of evidence suggests that online reading may be less engaging and less satisfying, even for the “digital natives“ for whom it is so familiar. G. In May 2013, for example, Br
12、itain“s National Literacy Trust released the results of a study of 34,910 young people aged 8 to 16. Researchers reported that 39% of children and teens read daily using electronic devices, but only 28% read printed materials every day. Those who read only onscreen were three times less likely to sa
13、y they enjoy reading very much and a third less likely to have a favorite book. The study also found that young people who read daily only onscreen were nearly two times less likely to be above-average readers than those who read daily in print or both in print and onscreen. H. To understand why we
14、should be concerned about how young people read, and not just whether they“re reading at all, it helps to know something about the way the ability to read evolved. “Human beings were never born to read,“ notes Maryanne Wolf, director of the Center for Reading and Language Research at Tufts Universit
15、y and author of Proust and the Squid: The Story and Science of the Reading Brain . Unlike the ability to understand and produce spoken language, which under normal circumstances will show up according to a program dictated by our genes, the ability to read must be acquired by each individual through
16、 effort. The “reading circuits“ we construct are recruited from structures in the brain that evolved for other purposesand these circuits can be weak or they can be strong, depending on how often and how vigorously we use them. I. The deep reader, protected from distractions and adapted to the tiny
17、differences of language, enters a state that psychologist Victor Nell, in a study of the psychology of pleasure reading, likens to a hypnotic trance (催眠性迷睡). Nell found that when readers are enjoying the experience the most, the pace of their reading actually slows. The combination of fast, fluent d
18、ecoding of words and slow, unhurried progress on the page gives deep readers time to enrich their reading with reflection, analysis, and their own memories and opinions. It gives them time to establish an intimate relationship with the author, the two of them engaged in an extended and passionate co
19、nversation like people falling in love. J. This is not reading as many young people are coming to know it. Their reading is practical and instrumental: the difference between what literary critic Frank Kermode calls “carnal (肉体的) reading“ and “spiritual reading.“ If we allow our offspring to believe
20、 carnal reading is all there isif we don“t open the door to spiritual reading, through an early insistence on discipline and practicewe will have cheated them of an enjoyable, even extremely exciting experience they would not otherwise have. And we will have deprived them of an enlightening experien
21、ce that will enlarge them as people. Observing young people“s attachment to digital devices, some progressive educators and tolerant parents talk about needing to “meet kids where they are,“ guiding them around their onscreen habits. This is mistaken. We need, rather, to show them someplace they“ve
22、never been, a place only deep reading can take them.（分数：25.00）(1).More and more evidence suggests that online reading may be less attractive and less satisfying.（分数：2.50）(2).It is reported that individuals who usually read fiction seem to understand others better.（分数：2.50）(3).We should instruct youn
23、g people to do some deep reading instead of letting them indulge in their onscreen habits.（分数：2.50）(4).We should take measures to preserve “deep reading“ just like we protect a historic building or a meaningful work of art.（分数：2.50）(5).Studies suggest that literature can increase readers“ capacity f
24、or empathy in real life.（分数：2.50）(6).Individuals must work hard to acquire the ability to read, which people are not born with.（分数：2.50）(7).Deep reading favors conventional books although it doesn“t necessarily require them.（分数：2.50）(8).Nell found that when people are enjoying their deep reading the
25、 most, they will slow down their reading speed.（分数：2.50）(9).Gregory Currie does not believe that literature can improve us as people.（分数：2.50）(10).Deep reading of books and online reading are very different in terms of the experience they produce and the capacities they develop.（分数：2.50）Why Humans a
26、nd Animals Rely on Social Touch?A. When you run your hands through your lover“s hair, you“re probably not thinking about your place in the social hierarchy (等级制度). Give your team-mate or colleague a pat on the back after failure, and the chances are you“re not consciously seeking to change the mix o
27、f signalling chemicals in their brain. It may not seem like it, but these socially important rituals and others like them has emerged before the time our species first walked the African large grassy plain. B. Human behaviours that involve physical social contact have a lot more in common with socia
28、l grooming (整饰，梳理毛发) activities we typically associate with other species than we might initially think. When rhesus monkeys (恒河猴) or chimpanzees (黑猩猩) pick through their friends“ fur, they“re not just helping them remove dirt from hard-to-reach spots. There is undoubtedly a hygienic (卫生的) benefit,
29、but this behaviour, which animal behaviour researchers call “allogrooming“, has far greater significance. Allogrooming is the currency of what primatologist (灵长类动物学家) Frans de Waal calls the “marketplace of services“ in chimpanzee life: it defines the social hierarchy, which in turn dictates access
30、to food, sex, and social support. For example, one chimpanzee is more likely to share food with another that has previously groomed it. Grooming also serves to ease tensions in a chimp troop following an aggressive situation. One of the most complex forms of reconciliation among chimpanzees occurs w
31、hen two rival males reach a point of stalemate (局), neither backing down nor increasing the aggressive interaction. Sometimes, a female breaks the stalemate and eases the tension by grooming first one male, and then the other, until the two become relaxed enough to end what amounted to an angry star
32、ing contest. C. According to anthropologist (人类学家) Robin Dunbar, this works because grooming stimulates the release of endorphins (内啡肽) which can bring about feelings of relaxation by lowering the heart rate, reducing obvious nervous behaviours like scratching, and even bringing on sleep. Female chi
33、mps that use grooming as a peacekeeping strategy may also experience their own rush of endorphins and enjoy many of the same benefits. D. Humans, lacking the fur of our evolutionary cousins, had to find a replacement for allogrooming. Like grooming, gossip establishes and maintains our place in the
34、social hierarchy. Also like grooming, the social information that makes up gossip is itself a form of currency in human culture. Or, at least, that“s the theory put forward by Dunbar. He argued, in his book Grooming, Gossip and the Evolution of Language , that the faculty of language allowed our spe
35、cies to substitute gossip for grooming. E. But grooming, and related forms of social physical contact, hasn“t gone away entirely. Words don“t always make adequate tools for communicating our feelings. Far more can be said by a sincere hug or pat on the shoulder after a friend suffers the loss of a r
36、elative than through words. In the same way, one“s love and desire for a partner can be conveyed with a tender stroke far more effectively than even the words “I want you“ ever could. Indeed, Dunbar writes, “the physical stimulation of touch tells us more about the inner feelings of the “groomer“, a
37、nd in a more direct way“ than words are able. And those forms of touch stimulate within us the same endorphin release that chimpanzees enjoy during social grooming. F. Some scientists have even gone as far as calling the skin a “social organ“. This makes good intuitive sense: we both desire for touc
38、h and hate it when it is unwanted, uninvited, or inappropriate. Even simple, brief touches on a hand or arm can have tremendous effects. India Morrison and colleagues at Goteborg University, in Sweden, have presented a laundry list of such findings. Hand-on-hand touches by librarians and salesperson
39、s have, for example, been found to lead to more favourable impressions of libraries and shops. People perceive others as more attractive following even a simple, non-sexual touch, and as a result are more likely to act altruistically (利他地) by returning change left in a pay phone, giving bigger tips
40、in restaurants, or giving away a cigarette to a stranger. G. And yet these effects might be thought of as simple tricks compared to the power that touch has between lovers, or between parents and their children. In one study, US psychologists investigated social grooming in humans by asking particip
41、ants to indicate their closest emotional relationship and report behaviours such as running their fingers through the person“s hair, wiping away their tears, scratching their back and non-sexual massage. They found levels of relationship satisfaction and trust were both positively correlated with se
42、lf-reported grooming frequency among romantic partners. And one finding hinted at a causal relationship: people who were more anxious about their relationships “groomed“ their partners more often than those who felt more secure with their partners, suggesting that grooming may serve to reduce relati
43、onship-related anxiety and to promote the development of romantic bonds. The pattern was true both for men and women. H. Babies also crave touch. It has long been known among animal behaviour researchers that physical contact is critical for proper social and emotional development. When developmenta
44、l psychologist Harry Harlow prevent infant rhesus monkeys from approaching a monkey mother in his 1950s experiments at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, they became withdrawn, depressed, and anxious. They refused food, and entered into what he called a “state of emotional shock“. When allowed acc
45、ess to a surrogate mother (代理母亲), the infant monkeys overwhelmingly chose a doll covered by terry cloth over a wire doll that provided food and water. The young monkeys preferred the comfort of even an inanimate mother“s touch to food. I. More recent research with rats got what is similar to Harlow“
46、s early findings. Canadian researchers found that when infant rats were licked and groomed more by their mothers, they grew up to be relatively well adjusted. But their counterparts who were not groomed often grew up, like Harlow“s monkeys, to be anxious and fearful. Touch-deprived rats also had wea
47、kened immune systems. It appears as if touch helps to maintain not only social and emotional health, but also physical health. J. All primates, from monkey to man, rely on social touch. Among non-human primates, grooming is a tool used to get favours, earn social standing, and increase access to res
48、ources. Gossip may have replaced dirt removal as a mechanism for defining and enhancing one“s place in human society, but the desire to be touched is carved so deeply within our primate heritage that it remained even as we shed our fur.（分数：25.00）(1).Robin Dunbar believes that grooming can bring abou
49、t feelings of relaxation.（分数：2.50）(2).We still badly want to be touched today even though we shed our fur.（分数：2.50）(3).Apart from the hygienic benefit, allogrooming has far greater significance.（分数：2.50）(4).Sometimes, physical touch expresses more than words do.（分数：2.50）(5).It seems that touch is not only beneficial to social and emotional health, but also helpful to physical health.（分数：2.50）(6).The more satisfied people are with their romantic relationship, the more frequently they groom their partners.（分数：2.50）(7).A chimpanzee tends to share food with another that has groomed it bef
