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Reading Comprehension (Skimming and Scanning)Directions: In this part, you will have 15 minutes to go over the passage quickly and answer the questions.For questions 1 7, choose the best answer from the four choices marked A), B), C) and D).For questions 8 10, complete the sentences with the information given in the passage.ONERight and Left-handedness in Humans Why do human, quite different from the other animal species, display a distinct left or right-handedness? Not even our closest relatives among the apes (猿) possess such decided lateral (橫向的) asymmetry (不對稱), as psychologists call it. Yet about 90 per cent of every human population that has ever lived appears to have been right-handed. Professor Bryan Turner at Deakin University has studied the research literature on left-handedness and found that handedness goes with sidedness. So nine out of ten people are right-handed and eight are right-footed. He noted that this distinctive asymmetry in the human population is itself systematic. “Humans are able to think about things in categories; black and white, up and down, left and right. Its a system of signs that enables us to categorize phenomena that are essentially ambiguous.”The Genetic or Inherited Element Research has shown that there is genetic or inherited (繼承的) element to handedness. But while left-handedness tends to appear in families, neither left nor right handers will automatically produce children with the same handedness; in fact about 6 per cent of children with two right-handed parents will be left-handed. However, among two left-handed parents, perhaps 40 per cent of the children will also be left-handed. With one right and one left-handed parent, 15 to 20 per cent of the children will be left-handed. Even among identical twins who have exactly the same genes, one in six pairs will differ in their handedness.Researchers Turning to the Brain What then makes people left-handed if it is not simply because of genetic cause? Other factors must be at work and researchers have turned to the brain for clues. In the 1860s the French surgeon and anthropologist (人類學(xué)家), Dr Paul Broca, made the remarkable finding that patients who had lost their powers of speech as a result of a stroke (a blood clot in the brain) had paralysis (癱瘓) of the right half of their body. He noted that since the left hemisphere (半球) of the brain controls the right half of the body, and vice versa, the brain damage must have been in the brains left hemisphere. Psychologists now believe that among right-handed people, probably 95 per cent have their language centre in the left hemisphere, while 5 per cent have right-sided language. Left-handers, however, do not show the reverse pattern but instead a majority also have their language centre in the left hemisphere. Some 30 per cent have right hemisphere language.The Evolution of Speech Went with Right-handed Preference Dr Brinkman, a brain researcher at the Australian National University in Canberra, has suggested that evolution of speech went with right-handed preference. According to Brinkman, as the brain evolved, one side became specialized for fine control of movement (necessary for producing speech) and along with this evolution came right-handed preference. According to Brinkman, most left-handers have left hemisphere dominance but also some capacity in the right hemisphere. She has observed that if a left-handed person is brain-damaged in the left hemisphere, the recovery of speech is quite often better than a right-handed one is. And this is explained by the fact that left-handers have more capacity for speech function in the right hemisphere. In her studies of macaque monkeys (短尾猴) Brinkman has noticed that primates (monkeys) seem to learn a hand preference from their mother in the first year of life but this could be one hand or the other. In humans, however, the specialization in function of the two hemispheres results in differences in the structure of human brain; areas that are involved with the production of speech are usually larger on the left side than on the right. Since monkeys have not acquired the capacity for speech, one would not expect to see such a difference, but Brinkman claims to have discovered a trend in monkeys towards the asymmetry that is clearly observed in the human brain.Development of the Brain May Lead to Handedness Two American researchers, Geschwind and Galaburda, studied the brains of human and discovered that the difference between left and right asymmetry exists before birth. But as the brain develops, a number of things can affect it. Every brain is initially female in its organization and it only becomes a male brain when the male fetus (胎兒) begins to produce hormones (荷爾蒙). Geschwind and Galburda knew that different parts of the brain mature at different rates; the right hemisphere develops first, then the left. Moreover, a girls brain develops somewhat faster than that of a boy. So, if something happens to the brains development during pregnancy, it is more likely to be affected in a male and the hemisphere more likely to be involved is the left. The brain may become less different and this in turn could result in left-handedness and the development of certain superior skills that have their origins in the left hemisphere such as logic, rationally and abstraction. It should be no surprise then that among mathematics and architects, left-handers tend to be more common and there are more left-handed males than females.Prejudice against Left-handed People The results of this research may be some consolation (安慰) to left-handers who have for centuries lived in a world that is designed to suit right-handed people. However, what is alarming, according to Mr. Charles Moore, a writer and journalist, is the way the word “right” reinforces its own advantages. Subliminally (下意識地) he says, language tells people to think that anything on the right can be trusted while anything on the left is dangerous or even evil. We speak of left-handed advantages, and on the other hand according to Moore, “it is certain that left-hand, often develop a stammer (口吃) as they are robbed of their freedom of speech.” However, as more research is undertaken on the causes of left-handedness, attitudes towards left-handed people are gradually changing for the better. Indeed when the champion tennis player Ivan Lend was asked what the only factor had improved his game, he said he would like to become a left-hander.1. Lateral asymmetry is a term used by psychologists to refer to the fact that _.A) there are both left and right handed peopleB) there are distinctive left and right handed peopleC) less than half of the population is left-handedD) the overwhelming number of the people are right-handed2. _ proposed that handedness goes with sidedness, evidenced by that fact that most people are right-handed and right-footed.A) Professor Bryan Turner B) Dr Paul BrocaC) Dr Brinkman D) Geschwind and Galaburda3. With one right and one left-handed parent, _ of the children are likely to be left-handed.A) about 40% B) about 30%C) less than 20% D) less than 15%4. How many of the left-handed people have their language center in the left hemisphere?A) 5% B) 30% C) 70% D) 95%5. In case of suffering damage to the left hemisphere, _ fare better in the recovery of speech.A) right-handed people B) left-handed peopleC) most right-handed people D) most left-handed people6. What is discovered as the trend in monkeys according to Dr. Brinkman?A) Some monkeys have acquired the capacity for speech.B) Some monkeys display hand preference.C) Monkeys would not develop asymmetry in their brains.D) Monkeys seem to be picking human asymmetry.7. How does the brain develop according to Geschwind and Galaburda?A) The males brain develops faster than the females brain.B) Male brains are more likely to be affected in pregnancy.C) It is hard to determine what affects the growth of the brain.D) Hormones play a decisive role in developing the brain.8. About _ per cent of children with two right-handed parents will be left-handed.9. With two left-handed parents, about _ per cent of children will be right-handed.10. The right half of the body is controlled by _ of the brain.TWOUsing the Mind to Fight DiseasesPsychology has a new application in the field of medicine. Many doctors, together with their patients, are looking for alternative methods of treatment of physical problems. In large hospitals and research centers, modern methods of therapy seem to focus on the physical disease without considering the patients mental state. Patients may feel that they are being treated impersonally, like broken machines. Some doctors have recognized this as a problem. They are now using psychological therapy with patients to use their own minds to fight their diseases. Because the patient is working with the medicine and the doctors against the disease, his or her attitude changes. The patient does not wait for the medicine and treatment to cure him or her, but instead the patient joins in the fight.Mental therapyThe doctor knows that a disease affects a patients body physically. The body of the patient (in this case, a man) changes because of the disease. He is not only physically affected, but as the physician knows, he also has an emotional response to the disease. Because his mind is affected, his attitude and behavior change. The medical treatment might cure the patients physical problems, but the patients mind must fight the emotional ones. For example, the studies of one doctor, Carl Simonton, M.D., have shown that a typical cancer patient (in this case, a woman) has predictable attitudes. She typically feels depressed, upset, and angry. Her self-image is poor and she feels self-pity. As a result, her behavior changes. Because of her constant depression, she acts unfriendly toward her family, friends, doctors, and nurses. Such attitudes and behaviors prevent the patient from getting well. Therefore, a doctors treatment must help the patient change her attitudes. Simontons method emphasizes treatment of the whole patient by treating both the body and the mind.The attitude of a cancer patient who is receiving radiation therapy, an X-ray treatment, can become more positive. The physician who is following Simontons psychological treatment plan suggests that the patient imagine that he or she can see the tumor (腫瘤) in the body. In the mental picture, the patient “sees” a powerful beam of radiation like a million bullets of energy. The patient imagines the beam hitting the tumor cells and causing them to shrink. For another cancer patient, Dr. Simonton might make another suggestion. This patient, with a different kind of cancer, needs to take capsules and pills several times a day. The doctor asks the patient to imagine the medicine going from the stomach into the bloodstream and to the cancer cells. The patient imagines that the medicine is like an army fighting the diseased cells and sees the cancer cells gradually dying. His or her blood carries away the dead cells. Both the medical therapy and the patients positive attitude fight the disease.Doctors are not certain why this mental therapy works. However, this use of psychology does help some patients because their attitudes about themselves change. They become more confident because they use the power within their own minds to help stop the disease.Suggestion therapyAnother application of using the mind to help cure disease is the use of suggestion therapy. Before making the suggestion, the doctor helps the patients to concentrate deeply. The patient (in this case, a man) thinks only about one thing. He becomes so unaware of other things around him that he seems to be asleep. He is said to be in trance (昏睡). Then the physician makes “a suggestion” to the patient about the medical problem. The patients mind responds to the suggestion even after the patient is no longer in the trance. In this way, the patient uses his mind to help his body respond to treatment.Suggestion therapy helpful for both adults and childrenDoctors have learned that this use of psychology is helpful for both adults and children. For example, physicians have used suggestion to help adults deal with the strong pain of some diseases. Furthermore, sometimes the adult patient (in this case, a woman) worries about her illness so much that the anxiety keeps her from getting well. The right suggestion may help the patient to stop being anxious. Such treatment may help the patient with a chronic disease. Asthma (哮喘) is an example of a chronic disorder. Asthma is a disease that causes the patient to have difficulty in breathing. The patient starts to cough and sometimes has to fight to get the air that he or she needs. Psychology can help relieve the symptoms of this disorder. After suggestion therapy, the asthma patient breathes more easily.Physicians have learned that the psychological method is very useful in treating children. Children respond quickly to the treatment because they are fascinated by it. For example, Dr. David R. Collison has worked with 121 asthmatic children in Sydney, Australia, and had good results. Twenty-five of the children had excellent results. They were able to breathe more easily, and they did not need medication. Another forty-three were also helped. The symptoms of the asthma occurred less frequently, and when they did, they were not as strong. Most of the children also felt better about themselves. Doctors have also used suggestion to change habits like nail-biting, thumb-sucking and sleep-related problems.Response from the medical worldMany professional medical groups have accepted the medical use of psychology because they recognize its value. Nobody knows how suggestion works; however, doctors have learned that psychology has important applications in medicine.1. What is the possible fault of modern methods of therapy according to the passage?A) They fail to take into consideration the patients mental state.B) They seem to be confused about the patients mental state.C) They have misunderstanding about the physical disease.D) They have too much concern for the patients mental state.2. Working with the medicine and the doctors, patients are highly likely to experience significant changes in their _.A) physical states B) attitudesC) emotional states D) recovery3. What is NOT mentioned as a predictable attitude of a typical cancer patient?A) Energized. B) Angry.C) Depressed. D) Upset.4. The method advocated by Dr Simonton focuses on _.A) treating the patient as a healthy personB) treating the patient like a friendC) treating the whole patient both the body and the mindD) treating the mind of the patient5. The cancer patient is asked to imagine the tumor being attacked by radiation in _ as provided by Dr. Simonton.A) a cancer removal operation B) a psychological treatmentC) a suggestion therapy D) a radiation therapy6. It is implied from paragraph four that the reaction of some doctors to the effect of mental therapy is generally _.A) affirmative B) suspiciousC) reserved D) supportive7. _ is a condition that affects the airways of the patient, causing breathing difficulties.A) A trance B) AsthmaC) A tumor D) Mental disorder8. From the last part of the passage, we can see both adults and children can benefit from _.9. Physicians have found that children make a quick response to suggestion therapy because _.10. Many professional medical doctors have recognized the value of psychological treatment and therefore they willingly _.ThreeGeothermal EnergyWhat does the word “geothermal” mean?“Geothermal” comes from the Greek words geo (earth) and thermo (heat). So, geothermal means earth heat.What is geothermal energy?Our earths interior like the sun provides heat energy from nature. This heat geothermal energy yields warmth and power that we can use without polluting the environment.Geothermal heat originates from Earths fiery (熾熱的) consolidation of dust and gas over 4 billion years ago. At earths core 4,000 miles deep temperature may reach over 9,000 degrees F.How does geothermal heat get up to Earths surface?The heat from the earths core continuously flows outward. It transfers (conducts) to the surrounding layer of rock, the mantle (地幔). When temperature and pressures become high enough, some mantle rock melts, becoming magma (巖漿). Then, because it is lighter (less dense) than the surrounding rock, the magma rises, moving slowly up toward the earths crust, carrying the heat from below.Sometimes the hot magma reaches all the way to the surface, where we know it as lave (熔巖). But most often the magma remains below earths crust, heating nearby rock and water (rainwater the has seeped deep into the earth) sometimes as hot as 700 degrees F. Some of this hot geothermal water travels back up through faults and cracks and reaches the earths surface as hot springs or geysers, but most of it stays deep underground, trapped in cracks and porous (有孔的) rock. This natural collection of hot water is called a geothermal reservoir (庫).How have people used geothermal energy in the past?From earliest times, people have used geothermal water