福建省漳州实验中学、龙海一中2015届高三上学期末考试英语试题

题卡上将该项涂黑。

A

We Chinese are not big huggers. A handshake or a pat on the shoulder is enough to convey our friendship or affection to one another. So when our newly-acquainted Western friends reach out in preparation for a hug, some of us feel awkward. Many questions go through our head. Where should I put my arms? Under their armpits or around their neck? What distance should I maintain? Should our chests touch?

It’s even more difficult with friends from some European countries. Should I kiss them on the cheek while hugging? Which side? Or is it both cheeks? Which side should I start on?

But it isn’t just people from cultures that are conservative in expressing physical contact who find hugging confusing．Hugs can cause discomfort or even distress in people who value their personal space．

In a recent article for The Wall Street Journal, US psychologist Peggy Drexler said that although the US remains a “medium touch” culture , Americans do seem to be hugging more.From politicians to celebrities, hugs are given to friends, strangers and enemies alike;whether they are willing or not; and the public has been quick to pick up the practice.

Public figures know that nothing expresses likeability(亲和力)like a good hug. US First Lady Michelle Obama has put her arms around icy foreign leaders like Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev and the Queen of England on the latter occasion actually breaking the rule of royal manners.

But not all are grateful to be embraced, even by the most influential and famous. To them, any hug is offensive if it’s not sincere.

Amanda Hess, writing for US magazine Slate, says public figures should stop imposing hugs on everyone they meet. For them, a hug is rarely a gesture of sincere fellowship, compassion or affection. It’s all part of a show. Hugs are falsely intimate power plays used by public figures to establish their social dominance over those in their grasp.

Cecilia Walden, a British journalist writing for The Telegraph who lives in New York, holds the same opinion. “Power-hugging”, as she calls it, is “an offender dressed up as kindness”. It has become a fashion in the US where “bosses are already embracing their staff (either shortly before or after firing them), men and women ,their friends or enemies, in a thousand cheating displays of unity”.

56. From the first third paragraphs, we can see that ___________. A. we Chinese people don’t know how to hug

B hugs can bring pressure to people when used improperly

C. people from European countries often get puzzled about hugging

D. people in Western countries seldom use hugs to express their physical closeness 57. The example of US first lady Michelle Obama is given to show that __________. A. hugs are forbidden in England

B. she is much liked by American people C. Americans hold a “medium touch ”culture

D. public figures know hugging functions well in public

58.Which of the following is closest in meaning to the underlined phrase“pick up the practice”? A．Follow the trend． B． Enjoy the medium touch culture．

C．Give hugs to enemies． D．Resist physical touch． 59. What can be the best title of this passage?

A. Hugs, tricky affair? B. Hugs, vital or not? C. Hugs and public figures D. Hugs and power B

Doctors sometimes use light therapy to treat a form of depression in people who get too little morning sun. But too much light at other times may actually cause such mood disorder. Long-lasting exposure to light at night brings depression, a new study finds, at least in animals.

The new data confirm observations from studies of people who work night shifts, says Richard Stevens of the University of Connecticut Health Center. Mood disorders join a growing list of problems, including cancer, obesity and diabetes that can occur when light throws life out of balance by disturbing the biological clock and its timing of daily rhythms.

In the new study, Tracy Bedrosian and Randy Nelson of Ohio State University exposed mice to normal light and dark cycles for four weeks. For the next four weeks, half of the mice remained on this schedule, and the rest received continuous dim light throughout their night. Compared with mice exposed to normal night-time darkness, those getting dim light at night lost their strong preference for sweet drinks. “A sign that they no longer get pleasure out of activities they once enjoyed,” Bedrosian says.

In a second test, mice were clocked on how long they actively tried to escape a pool of water. Those exposed to night lights stopped struggling and just floated in the water, a sign of “behavioral despair”, 10 times as long as the mice that had experienced normal night-time darkness. All symptoms of depression disappeared within two weeks of the mice returning to a normal light-dark cycle, the researchers report. The scientists could also quash the behavioral symptoms by injecting the brains of animals with a drug that prohibits the activity of certain molecules linked with human depression. This finding further suggests that light at night may cause something related to depression.

Human studies linking night-time light and mood disorders are important but can not easily detect molecular underpinnings(分子基础) as animal studies can, says George Brainard of Thomas Jefferson University. The new work, he says, suggests that the change of the biological clock by light at night can be “an extremely powerful force in regulating biology and behavior”.

60. After being exposed to continuous night-time light, the mice _______________.

A. changed their preferences B. showed less interest in their favorites C. remained active as before D. escaped from the water more eagerly 61. What does the underlined word “quash” in paragraph 4 probably mean?

A. ease B. predict C. study D. cause 62. We can learn from the last paragraph that _______________. A. the biological clock is beneficial to humans B. light at night may have practical value

C. human mood disorders cannot be healed easily

D. human studies are more important than animal studies

63. What is the main idea of the passage?

A. A drug has been found to cure mood disorders. B. Night-time light may cause depression.

C. The study on animals can be applied to humans. D. Human biological clock can be controlled by light.

C

Are you smarter than your parents and grandparents? According to James Flynn, a professor at a New Zealand university, you are! Over the course of the last century, people’s IQ test scores have gotten steadily higher --- on average, three points higher each decade. This improvement is known as the “Flynn effect”, and scientists want to know what is behind it.

IQ tests are designed to measure general intelligence rather than knowledge. Flynn believes that intelligence partly comes from our parents and partly is the result of our environment, but the improvement in test scores has been happening too quickly to be explained by heredity. So what has occurred in the 20th century to help people achieve higher scores?

Scientists have proposed several explanations for the Flynn effect. Some suggest that the improved test scores simply reflect an increased exposure to tests in general and the learning of test-taking techniques that help us perform better on any test. Others have pointed to better nutrition. Babies now are born larger, healthier, and with more brain development than in the past. Another suggested explanation is a change in educational styles, with teachers encouraging children to learn by discovering things for themselves rather than just memorizing information, which improves their problem-solving skills.

Flynn has limited the possible explanations after carefully examining test data and discovering that the improvement in scores has taken place in only certain parts of the IQ test. Test-takers are not doing better on the maths or vocabulary sections of the test; they are doing better on the sections requiring reasoning and problem solving. For example, one part of the test shows a set of shapes, and test-takers must find the patterns and connections between them.

According to Flynn, this visual intelligence improves as the amount of technology in our lives increases. Every time you play a computer game, you are exercising exactly the kind of thinking and problem solving that helps you do well on one kind of intelligence test. So are you really smarter than your parents? In one very specific way, you may be. 64. According to the passage, the “Flynn effect” is ________.

A. a method used to measure intelligence B. the influence of technology on intelligence C. an increase in IQ test scores over time

D. a theory that connects intelligence to experience 65. What is the function of the third paragraph?

A. To list the findings of Professor Flynn’s research.

B. To outline different theories explaining the increase in IQ scores. C. To provide possible explanations that disprove Flynn’s ideas.

D. To describe how research was carried out in the measuring of intelligence. 66. Which statement would Professor Flynn agree with?

A. People today are taking easier tests.

B. People today have fewer problems to solve. C. The language ability of people has improved. D. Not all aspects of intelligence have increased.

D

What is great art? On the one hand, we can all see that great art is old art which is called great. But how do we know which art of our own times is great, and which will be forgotten?

And who decides?

These are important questions, for the great art of the past often was not considered great during its own time. When Shakespeare and Charles Dickens were writing, for example, most critics considered them as hack (平庸的) writers with little or no literary ability.

Similarly, Van Gogh and many of the other Impressionist painters of the late nineteenth century were not allowed to participate in events involving what were thought to be the \painters of the time, and often they were very poor. Yet today their paintings often sell for millions of dollars, while those so-called \

So what makes great art? Can, for example, rock music be great art? Music videos? Cartoons and comics? Those who call themselves critics of the fine arts often have been the last to recognize great art in the past, and we can probably expect this to be the situation today.

Critics often don’t recognize great art because they tend to be prejudiced against what is popular. Popular works, whether they are novels, movies, or comics, are usually considered to be produced for the sake of money only, and not for the sake of art.

But popularity, it seems to me, is one of the three signs that a present-day work of art may come to be thought of as great. The other two are that it is groundbreaking, and that it is inherently (内在的) beautiful.

Many works have one or even two of these qualities of being popular, unusual, and beautiful. But having all the three often will mean that a work of art will someday be seen to be great, though it may take a good spoonful of time, such as a century or two, to know for sure. 67.The first paragraph is intended to__________. A．introduce some real painters to the readers

B．introduce the questions the writer wants to answer C．lead to the following and arouse the reader’s curiosity D．explain what kind of art will become popular

68.The author used the examples of Shakespeare, Charles Dickens and Van Gogh to prove _____.

A．these masters’ works have some shortcomings

B．these masters wouldn’t have been so successful without the critics C．great masters are often not acknowledged while they were alive D．truly beautiful works of art are never understood when first created 69. According to the author, great works _______. A．may be presented in different forms B．are generally valued by critics

C．are thought valuable because of their sale price D．will lose their value if they’re not accepted 70. What can be inferred from the passage?

A．Critics have changed their attitudes to great works. B．Most of the opinions of critics are valueless.

C．Works of Impressionist painters will be great one day.

D．The work of art itself, not the critics, determines its greatness.

E

Napoleon, as a character inTolstoy’s War and Peace, is more than once described as