Ⅰ.阅读理解
Music is not just a set of sounds and rhythms. Its influence on the brain is much deeper than any other human experience. Keep on reading to know all those amazing powers of music.
A recent study suggests that preterm (早产的) babies appear to experience less pain and feed more when listening to music. Experts led by Dr. Manoj Kumar of the University of Alberta, Canada, found that music had a beneficial effect on reducing pain for preterm babies experiencing painful medical tests. It also appeared to benefit fullterm babies during operations.
Many people experiencing brain damage have speech and movementrelated problems. Music can help recover from brain injuries. As a different and effective treatment, doctors often advise such patients to listen to good music to improve the parts of the brain responsible for these two functions. When people with neurological (神经的) disorders hear a musical beat, it helps them to regain a balanced walk.
Though music cannot make deafness disappear, it really can stave off the loss of hearing. There was an experiment involving 163 people where 74 were musicians. Participants were asked to pass some listening tests. Musicians heard the sounds better than nonmusicians, and this difference gets clearer with age. This means that a 70yearold musician hears better than a 50yearold nonmusician, even in a noisy environment.
Besides, music mends a broken heart. It is not about a thrownaway love, but about a heart attack. The matter is that music can help people recover from a heart attack or heart operation by reducing blood pressure, slowing down the heartbeat rate, and reducing anxiety. Listening to the quality music produces positive emotions, improves the movement of blood, and expands blood vessels, thus, promoting quick recovery of the whole cardiovascular (心血管的) system.
语篇大意：这是一篇说明文，主要说明了音乐对人的大脑和心理所能够产生的积极影响。
1. How does music affect preterm babies?
A．It helps reduce their pain.
B．It helps develop their potential in music.
C．It helps improve their hearing systems.
D．It helps repair their neurological systems.
答案：A
解析：细节理解题。根据第二段第一句“A recent study suggests that preterm (早产的) babies appear to experience less pain and feed more when listening to music.”可知最近的一项研究表明，早产儿在听音乐时，似乎经历的痛苦更少，吃得更多。故音乐可以帮助早产儿减少痛苦，故选A。
2．What does the underlined phrase “stave off” in Paragraph 4 mean?
A．Lead to. B．Increase.
C．Prevent. D．Break into.
答案：C
解析：词义猜测题。根据第四段第一句“Though music cannot make deafness disappear, it really can stave off the loss of hearing.”可知，虽然音乐不能使失聪者复原，但它确实可以防止听力丧失。故可知stave off意思为“预防；阻止”，故选C。
3．Why can music mend a broken heart?
A．It has a positive effect on human body systems' work.
B．It can help people prevent diseases caused by anxiety.
C．It helps make a person feel optimistic about life.
D．It can help patients recover in a slow way.
答案：A
解析：细节理解题。根据最后一段最后一句“Listening to the quality music produces positive emotions, improves the movement of blood, and expands blood vessels, thus, promoting quick recovery of the whole cardiovascular (心血管的) system.”可知听高质量的音乐可以产生积极的情绪，促进血液运动，扩张血管，从而促进整个心血管系统的快速恢复。故音乐通过对人体系统的工作产生积极的影响以修复破碎的心脏。故选A。
4．What may be the best title for the text?
A．Who can benefit from music
B．The best time to listen to music
C．The way to choose quality music
D．How music affects our mind and body
答案：D
解析：标题判断题。这是一篇说明文，主要说明了音乐对人的身体和心理的影响。故选D。
