1、雅思（阅读）模拟试卷 31 及答案与解析 一、 Reading Module (60 minutes) 0 HOME-THE NEW WORKPLACE One of the scourges of the modern world is the length of time we take commuting to and from work. In large cities this can mean losing three or more hours every day just traveling from home to work and back again. Surely th
2、ere is an alternative! Well, according to a survey conducted in the US, 22% of people would much prefer working from home, should circumstances allow. Liz Sewell spoke to several people who have already made the change to this modern-day workplace to try and find out more. Scott Miller is a 40-year-
3、old draughtsman who has been working from home for the past two years. He admits that it wasnt something that he craved for; rather it happened when his wife, Jules, a university lecturer, was offered a full-time position. “She didnt think that she could take the job. I knew that she really wanted i
4、t, but she didnt want to put our son into full-time care. I had been working for the same firm for seven years and decided to approach my bosses. My track record probably helped because they accepted the proposition. As long as my productivity was maintained, they didnt mind where I worked. Also my
5、wife is happy, and her career is blossoming.“ “Now I go into the office every Monday afternoon for a meeting and to pick up my weeks work. Interestingly, I feel that I work even better from home, so much so that even though our son is now at school, I still work there.“ However, is working from home
6、 as simple as it sounds? Transferring work to a different workplace is only part of the equation for Joanne McCarthy, who until three months ago was a Human Resources Manager for a large public corporation. She has now become a full-time trader on the stock market. She says she loves the freedom tha
7、t working from home gives her, but she really misses the social interaction. “As my job just involves working for myself, by myself, I find that I have become much more introverted because I dont have that face-to-face, professional involvement with people any more. I spend all day on the computer c
8、hecking the prices of my stocks. By evening, I am desperate to talk to my husband - even if it is only about what he has been doing all day.“ She has realized that this could jeopardise her attempts to work from home and has decided to join a local investors club which meets once a week, just to get
9、 more interaction in her life. “I dont think Ill learn anything from it, but it will be nice to meet with like-minded people and talk business. Meeting friends for coffee or for lunch meets my social needs, but work is still a large part of my life.“ One of Joannes friends helped her to make the tra
10、nsition to working from home. Louise Tate is an accountant and used to commute an hour each way to her office before deciding there had to be a better way. For her, the biggest problem with working from home was distractions. “It was so easy to get distracted by the other things you have to do at ho
11、me, like washing and cleaning,“ she told us. “I had to force myself to view my study as an office, not part of the house. So I came up with a novel idea-my husband thought I was mad, but I had a separate entrance built to the office. At the beginning of my workday, I go out of the front door of our
12、house, lock it, and then walk around to the office. Now I feel that I am really at work, and my productivity has increased as a result. I know it sounds strange, but it works for me.“ Twelve months down the track and Louise never wants to face the morning traffic again. People choose to work from ho
13、me for a multitude of reasons. Take the example of George Mercer, who owns seven cafes within a 7 mile radius of downtown Miami. He has based his office in his Fort Lauderdale beachfront home, and keeps in contact with his various managers by phone, fax and email. “When I started the business four y
14、ears ago, I couldnt decide which cafe to have as my main base, so I decided to set up my office at home. With modern telecommunications nowadays, I am always able to contact my premises and order provisions from my suppliers.“ “If I get fed up with working from home, or if there are problems that ha
15、ve to be dealt with in person, I just jump in the car and drive to the cafes. From time to time, we have meetings at my place, which give the managers a break from their own offices. They get a change of scenery. I still have control but they have a large amount of independence in the day-to-day run
16、ning of the cafes. I love my job and its obvious that my managers respond well to the arrangement. Lifes great at the moment and I wouldnt change a thing!“ Obviously, not everyone is able to have the type of work that can be done from home, but there are plenty of people just like me-judging by Inte
17、rnet sites and the more traditional employment vacancy ads-who would jump at the chance. 1 Using information from Reading Passage 1, match the people listed (A-F) in the box below with their descriptions (Questions 1-8). Write your answers in boxes 1-8 on your Answer Sheet. NOTE: there are more desc
18、riptions than people. You may use any of the choices more than once. A. Scott Miller B. Joanne McCarthy C. Louise Tate D. George Mercer E. None of the above F. All of the above _ needs to be good at maths. 2 _ is not self-employed. 3 _ has been working from home for the longest period. 4 _ altered t
19、heir house to be able to work at home. 5 _ doesnt need to interact with clients to carry out their business. 6 _ thinks that they are less successful working from home. 7 _ helped someone else to retain his/her career. 8 _ lives on the coast. 9 Scott Miller （ A） had always wanted to work from home.
20、（ B） no longer has the original reason for working from home. （ C） had difficulty persuading his employer to let him do it. （ D） only visits the office for staff meetings. 10 Joanne McCarthy （ A） sometimes has regrets about working from home. （ B） enjoys talking about her work with her husband. （ C）
21、 is still learning her business. （ D） is determined to ensure that working from home satisfies her. 11 Louise Tate （ A） got angry with her husband about the office door. （ B） had to have a total change of mindset to be able to work from home. （ C） often gets distracted by her domestic duties. （ D） r
22、ecommends working from home. 12 George Mercer （ A） does all his business using modern telecommunications. （ B） usually only sees his managers at scheduled meetings. （ C） lives less than 7 miles from any of his cafes. （ D） None of the above. 13 The writer of this article （ A） is envious of these peop
23、le being able to work from home. （ B） works from home herself. （ C） doesnt give her opinion on the subject. （ D） plans to work from home in the future. 13 ALZHEIMERS DISEASE Alzheimers disease is a progressive, neurodegenerative disease which is caused by physiological changes to the brain. It chang
24、es the delicate organisation of the nerve cells in the brain by creating the gradual spread of sticky plaques and clumps of tangled fibres. As brain cells stop communicating with each other, they atrophy, causing memory and reasoning to fade. Tangles and plaques first appear in the entorhinal cortex
25、, an essential memory-processing centre needed for creating memories and retrieving old ones. This does not affect detailed complex memories, but rather the simple recollections of facts that allow us to function socially, such as birthdays and lunch dates. Over time they move higher, invading the h
26、ippocampus, that part of the brain that forms complex memories of events or objects. These kinds of memories are, of necessity, more detailed and involve longer recollections. It allows us to recall how to function at work and complete reasonably complex tasks but without the need to analyse or make
27、 judgements. Finally, the tangles and plaques reach the top of the brain or the neocortex, the executive that sorts through stimuli and orchestrates behaviour. Here, amongst other functions, we are using analytical skills to evaluate, digest and respond to situations appropriately. The onset of the
28、disease is characterised by an initial memory decline and, over several years, it destroys cognition, personality and the ability to function, but preserves motor function. Confusion and restlessness may also occur. It is a progressive disease and the type, severity, sequence and progression of any
29、mental changes that occur vary widely, The early symptoms of Alzheimers which include forgetfulness and loss of concentration, can easily be missed because they resemble the natural signs of aging. Similar symptoms can also result from fatigue, grief, depression, illness, vision or hearing loss, the
30、 use of alcohol or certain medications, or simply the burden of too many details to remember at once. A cure is not imminent; there is no way to deter the progression of the disease and its precise cause is largely mysterious. On average, 10% of people over 65 will contract Alzheimers disease, a num
31、ber that rises to 50% by the age of 80. Its onset may occur as early as the age of 40. Approximately 100,000 victims die and 360,000 new cases of Alzheimers disease are diagnosed each year. It is estimated that by the year 2050, 14 million Americans will have this disease. Much current knowledge abo
32、ut this illness comes from a single piece of ongoing research: The Nun Study. Since 1986, David Snowdon, a scientist from the University of Kentucky, has been studying 678 School Sisters. To Snowdon, this group of elderly women represented an ideal population for studying the disease: their economic
33、 status, health care and living conditions are uniform with fewer variations in lifestyle to confound the data. Of course, the very homogeneity of this population means Snowdons study has its detractors-for example, the nuns face few of the stresses of modern life, nor do they smoke or drink. Some o
34、f the factors that lead to Alzheimers disease may not be present in their lives. But whatever the limits, Dr. Snowdons study has achieved a 68% compliance rate among the sisters in that religious community, and continues after death with post-mortem examinations of their brains, and thus promising m
35、uch valuable information. Over the years, Snowdon and his colleagues have discovered a series of unexpected links between lifestyle and Alzheimers disease. It has been known for some time that genes can predispose people to Alzheimers disease, but Snowdons study has shown that other factors play an
36、important part in the development of this dreadful disease. Some of the results of the study have been widely publicised. The study found that those nuns whose early autobiographies contained complex grammar and a greater density of ideas had the lowest risk of developing Alzheimers disease. This re
37、sult that isolates complexity in writing as a protector against Alzheimers disease suggests a correlation between higher brain capacity and lowered risk. Preliminary studies also seemed to indicate that those nuns whose early autobiographies suggested a predisposition to negative emotions had a high
38、er risk of Alzheimers disease than those who were more optimistic in the way they conveyed their written ideas. Other important findings of the study include the fact that stroke increases the risk of Alzheimers disease. Evidence of stroke, including those undiagnosed before death, as well as earlie
39、r brain trauma, as from head injury, was more prevalent in those nuns who died of Alzheimers disease than in those who died without that diagnosis. Dr. Snowdons research also confirms the suspicion that folate deficiency might contribute to Alzheimers disease. High folate levels appear to have been
40、protective in these nuns. This ties in with other studies which have shown that folic acid deficiency plays a role in some forms of mental retardation in children and in some cognitive problems in adults. New research is showing that the decline in cognitive function may start sooner than previously
41、 thought. Scientists suggest that a condition known as mild cognitive impairment, in which patients in their forties and fifties exhibit memory and recall problems, is very likely the first step along the way to Alzheimers disease. If so, then it is important to start slowdown strategies as soon as
42、possible. Glossary: The entorhinal cortex, the hippocampus and the neocortex are those parts of the brain that are primarily affected by Alzheimer s disease. plaque fibre-like substance which multiplies in the brain of Alzheimers sufferers. folate is water-soluble vitamin B occurring naturally in fo
43、ods such as leafy green vegetables, some fortified cereals and grain products. 14 Using information from Reading Passage 2 match the physiological causes (A-C) in the box below with the effects on memory (Questions 14-17). Write your answers in boxes 14-17 on your Answer Sheet. PHYSIOLOGICAL CAUSES
44、A. tangles and plaques in the entorhinal cortex B. tangles and plaques in the hippocampus C. tangles and plaques in the neocortex _ difficulty recalling what you ate for breakfast this morning 15 _ difficulty completing a detailed work related report 16 _ difficulty remembering someones name 17 _ di
45、fficulty in using the photocopying machine at work 18 Complete the summary by using words and phrases from the list provided in the box below. Write your answers in boxes 18-24 on your Answer Sheet. NOTE: there are more words than you need. You may use any word or phrase more than once. functions vi
46、ctims genetic predisposition limited future examined unexpected links absent slowed short term been indicating movement decteased gets smaller characteristics discovered Alzheimers disease is an illness that robs its victims of memory, personality and finally all cognitive function. It does not affe
47、ct【 18】 . It is impossible to predict how the disease will progress because its【 19】 vary greatly. Diagnosis in the early stages is difficult because symptoms resemble the consequences of normal aging and can also be the result of a number of other unrelated ailments. There is no hope for a cure in
48、the【 20】 and once someone has the disease, its progression cannot be【 21】 . The percentage of people contracting Alzheimers disease increases with age. Ongoing research has been conducted in the form of The Nun Study which has【 22】 the physiological changes and lifestyles of 678 nuns in America from
49、 1986. The study has been criticised because some of the factors that may lead to Alzheimers disease were【 23】 in the nuns lives. Nonetheless the study provides invaluable data. The study has isolated connections between lifestyle and Alzheimers disease that occur independently of【 24】 . 25 Complete the information below by identifying TWO other indicators that protect from Alzheimers disease. Use NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from Reading Passage 2 for each
