Do you believe that things are connected for no scientific reason at all? For example, do you avoid saying the word “four” to avoid bad luck? If so, you have a superstition (迷信). And you’re not alone – all kinds of people have them.
For example, Portugal’s soccer superstar Cristiano Ronaldo always steps onto the pitch (球场) with his right foot first, according to The Telegraph. And sports players are not alone in having superstitions. A visitor once asked the Nobel Prize winning scientist Niels Bohr whether he really believed that the horseshoe he’d hung at his country home was lucky. “Of course not,” the Danish physicist said. “But I understand it’s lucky whether you believe in it or not.”
One recent study found that even scientists at MIT and other top US schools tended to look for a meaning in natural events, similar to the connection between stepping on the pitch and playing soccer well, according to The Atlantic. When the researchers gave the scientists little time to answer questions, they were twice as likely to agree with statements such as “Trees produce oxygen so that animals can breathe” as they were when they had more time to think about their reply.
It seems that fear can make people think differently in this way, too. In a British study, students imagined meeting a “witch” who said she would cast (施魔法) an evil spell(符咒) on them. About half said a scientist should not be worried about the spell. Yet each of them said that, personally, they wouldn’t let the witch do it to them.
So why are so many of us superstitious? Well, it seems to be our way of dealing with the unknown. “Many people quite simply just want to believe,” Brian Cronk, a professor of psychology at Missouri Western State University, said in a 2008 interview. “The human brain is always trying to work out why things happen, and when the reason is not clear, we tend to make up some pretty bizarre (古怪的) explanations.”
And these explanations aren’t completely unhelpful. In fact, superstitions can sometimes work and bring real luck, according to psychologists at the University of Cologne in Germany in the May 2010 issue of the journal Psychological Science. They found that believing in something can improve performance on a task like an exam.
So, what about you? What superstitions do you follow to keep you safe and successful?
25. The author mentions avoiding saying the word "four" in the opening paragraph to ________.
A. show how foolish it is to believe in superstitions
B. introduce the readers to the topic of superstitions
C. discuss the scientific reasons behind superstitions
D. prove that it is reasonable to be superstitious
26. How many superstitious practices are mentioned in the passage?
A. 3 B. 2 C. 4 D. 5
27. What’s the author’s attitude to superstitions?
A. Unknown B. Positive C. Negative D. Neutral
28. What is the best title of the article?
A. Why superstitions are common
B. How superstitions affect our daily lives
C. How some common superstitions came into being
D. How to get rid of superstitions
BADA
政治经济类文章的概念:
要做好这类阅读,平时就要注意了解国内外发生的政治经济大事,掌握一定背景知识,对这类文章的叙述特点及内容安排有一定了解,还要扩展这方面的词汇。阅读这类文章,要抓住文章的核心,即文章整体和各段主要在说什么,也要注意段落之间的逻辑关系。
如何备考政治经济类阅读理解题:
【题型说明】政治经济类阅读文章是高考常选材料之一。该类文章时代气息浓郁,语言鲜活,但熟字新义词、超纲词及专业词语多,长句、难句多。政治类文章大多数是同学们感性趣的内容,读起来倒有似曾相识的感觉,经济类文章读起来就像是雾里看花,文章看完,一头雾水。再加之这类文章的命题侧重于词义猜测、推理判断和文章主旨,同学们对这类题材是望而生畏。
【备考策略】建立心理优势。针对不同体裁的文章,我们要采取相应的阅读方法和技巧。政治类文章多采用记叙文形式,我们可采取“顺读法”,以便抓关键语句,领会文章主旨;而经济类文章则多采用说明文形式,我们则可以采取“逆读法”,先读试题,再从文章中查找有用信息。若遇到的确难读的材料。千万不用着急,因为你觉得难,其他人也一定是同感。在高考前,我们就要有这种心理准备,高考试卷肯定有一、两篇难以阅读的材料。不过,我们平时可以有意识地从报刊杂志上找一些较难的阅读材料来阅读,以培养自己迎难而上的心理素质。
【答题方法】
1、寻找主干:
根据英语中五种基本句型结构,把句子中的主语、谓语、宾语、表语等主要成分找出来,其他成分如定语、状语、补语等则易于理解。找到了句子主干,句子的意思至少明白了一半。
2、剔除从句:
在一个长句中可能会出现若干个从句,在理解时,如果把各个从句剔除出来单独理解,然后把大意拼凑起来,整个长句的意思就会明白六、七分。
3、辨别分句:
一个长句如果是由几个并列、转折、递进、对比关系的分句组成,句中往往有表示这些分句关系的连接词,只要能弄清楚分句和分句之间的逻辑关系,再把各层分句的意思加以连贯,整个长句的句意基本上能跃然脑中。
4、寻找关键词:
如果一个句子看完,一点句意的感觉也没有,下下策就是抓住句中的关键词,通过关键词大体弄懂这个长句的意思。
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