"Earworms", some people call them. Songs that get stuck in your head go round and round, sometimes for days, sometimes for months. For no clear reason you cannot help yourself from humming or singing a tune by Lady Gaga.
To a psychologist, the most interesting thing about earworms is that they show a part of our mind that is clearly outside of our control. Earworms arrive without permission and refuse to leave when we tell them to. They are parasites (寄生虫) living in a part of our minds.
If you have got an earworm you can suffer an attack of it simply by someone mentioning the tune, without having to hear it. This proves that earworms are a part of long-term memory. Humans have an "inner ear", for remembering phone numbers, for instance. When it gets infected with earworms, rather than review our plans for the day, or lists of things to remember, the inner ear gets stuck on a few short bars of music or a couple of phrases from a song. A part of us that we normally do not have to think about, that should just do what we ask, has been turned against us, upsetting us with a request that we never asked for. The mind is an inner world which we do not have complete knowledge of, or have control over.
Fortunately psychology can provide some advice on how to deal with an uncontrollable mind. Consider the famous "don’t think of a white bear" problem, which tells you to try not to think about white bears, or to do something else, to avoid both thinking of the white bear and not thinking of the white bear. For earworms, the solution may be the same. Our inner ear has become infected with an earworm. This is a part not under our control, so just sending in instructions to "shut up" is unlikely to be of much help (and has been shown to make it worse). Much better is to employ the inner ear in another task. If your mind is poisoned by Brittany Spears’ Toxic, for instance, then try singing Kylie Minogue’s Can’t Get You out Of My Head. Let me know if it works!
1.According to the passage, earworms are ______.
A．songs that keep going round in our mind
B．worms that live in a part of our brain
C．tunes by pop singers like Lady Gaga
D．parasites clearly under our control
2.Which of the following statements is TRUE?
A．Singing songs may get earworms out of your head.
B．Earworms are used for keeping long-term memory.
C．Humans do not have complete control over their mind.
D．You won’t suffer from earworms unless you hear the song.
3.What does “it” in the last paragraph refer to?
A．The instruction to shut up your mind.
B．“Don’t think of the white bear” problem.
C．Kylie Minogue’s Can’t Get You out Of My Head.
D．Using the earworm-infected inner ear in another task.
4.What is the passage mainly about?
A．The causes and influences of earworms.
B．What earworms are and how to deal with them.
C．How to clear earworms out of your head.
D．The relation between earworms and popular songs.
What would happen if you tried to blow a soap bubble in freezing weather? Would it freeze solid(固体) and fall to the ground? Would you have to hit it to break it? These questions happened to me on a cold winter day. It was too cold to play in the snow, but it was a perfect time to experiment with blowing frozen bubbles.
To blow frozen bubbles, I used dishwashing soap and a drop of glycerin（甘油） to make it even better. I chose a place out of the wind, and blew bubbles the same way I always do. I watched to see what would happen. Here’s what I learned.
If the temperature is low enough, the skin of the bubbles frosts over (结霜), becoming cloudy instead of clear. And what about those rainbow swirls（旋转） you see in soap bubbles? The rainbow colors stay even when the bubbles frost, but they don’t swirl anymore. The bubbles still stay in the air. They don’t fall to the ground any faster than they would on a warm summer day.
When these frozen bubbles break, they don’t turn into small water drops as summer bubbles do. They turn into flashing rainbow confetti（碎屑） and move slowly to the ground. Sometimes a frozen bubble will roll across the snow without breaking. If nothing disturbs the bubble, it may stay there for a long time. Sometimes I could catch a bubble and hold it until the heat of my hand made it pop.
I learned another thing about blowing frozen bubbles. It’s so interesting that I want to try it again next year.
1.It is the perfect time to blow frozen bubbles on a ___________day.
A．cold winter B．warm spring C．hot summer D．sunny autumn
2.When the frozen bubbles break, _________.
A．they make a big sound B．they turn into small drops
C．they fall to the ground like rain D．they become rainbow confetti
3.The purpose of the passage is _______.
A．to learn how to do a science experiment
B．to show the experiment of blowing frozen bubbles
C．to discover games that are fun to play in the snow
D．to invent a new kind of soap that makes stronger bubbles
My Classroom Wheel Teachers 2012~2013
Welcome to My Art Class!
My Classroom Mission(任务)
We will learn about art history, artists and develop students’ talent. In order to learn, be creative and improve our painting skills, we will have a relaxing classroom.
Name: Kathy Grady
Email Address: kgrady@iss.k12.nc.us Welcome to Pope’s Computer Lab!
My Classroom Mission
Students will work together and actively take part in designing the computer programs. By doing this we will be able to use computer technology successfully in our lives.
Name: Barbara Pope
Email Address: bpope@iss.k12.nc.us
Welcome toMyPE class!
My Classroom Mission
Be active in PE classes! You do not have to be an Olympic athlete to get an A in my class. Take part in our sports activities to keep a healthy body and mind. All students will be successful.
Name: Sherry Cash
Email Address: scash@iss.k12.nc.us Welcome to the Science Lab!
My Classroom Mission
This year we will learn about science by becoming a scientist. We will do experiments, observe, touch, listen, and ask questions about our world. We will learn to care for our world. We will never give up trying!
Name: Denise Harris
Email Address: dharris@iss.k12.nc.us
1.In order to improve___________, the students will have a relaxing classroom.
A．painting skills B．computer programs C．sports activities D．science studies
2.We can email at ________ to get more information about computer class.
A．dharris@iss.k12.nc.us B．kgrady@iss.k12.nc.us
C．bpope@iss.k12.nc.us D．scash@iss.k12.nc.us
3.Students should go to __________ class to learn to do experiment.
A．Barbara Pope’s B．Sherry Cash’s C．Kathy Grady’s D．Denise Harris’
When I was in the sixth grade, one day my teacher asked our class to think about the question “What does ‘doing the right thing’ mean to you?” over the weekend. We could talk to our parents or anyone else we thought might have a good answer. 1 Monday, we were to hand in an essay（论文） on it, and be prepared to live up to our 2 .
The entire weekend, I was trying to 3 something that would impress my teacher and be easy to live by. I talked to my parents, called my grandmother and asked my neighbor. Everyone had good answers, but I didn’t feel like I could live up to them.
On Sunday afternoon, my parents said they were going to my Aunt Cindy’s house. That usually 4 that I would have to entertain my four-year-old cousin Andrea 5 my parents visited. I found a Disney movie for Andrea, and then I sat down and started to write my essay. It was due（到期的）the next morning and this was my last 6 .
Soon I felt a pair of eyes on me. It was Andrea. “What are you doing?” Andrea asked. “I have to write an essay about what ‘doing the right thing’ means to me.” I answered. Andrea laughed. Could this smart four-year-old 7 know the answer? “That’s easy,” she said. “Doing the right thing means being nice to your family and friends. Never lie. Eat lots of fruits and vegetables. Take a bath when you’re 8 . And never put rocks in your mouth.”
I stared with great 9 at my little cousin. Then I jumped up and gave her the biggest hug. Not only had Andrea answered a very tough question for me, but I could easily live by 10 of her answers. All I had to do was to be nice, not to lie, to keep myself clean and healthy, and never put rocks in my mouth. So when I wrote my essay, I 11 the story about Andrea and how she had answered my question.
Two weeks later, my teacher returned everyone’s essays. I 12 an A+ along with a little note my teacher had written at the top: “Always do the right thing and give Andrea an A+, too!”
1. A．By B．Over C．About D．For
2. A．answers B．plans C．advice D．information
3. A．look through B．keep on C．make up of D．come up with
4. A．left B．meant C．decided D．explained
5. A．since B．because C．while D．before
6. A．task B．chance C．step D．choice
7. A．quickly B．normally C．seriously D．possibly
8. A．dirty B．tired C．sleepy D．unhappy
9. A．pride B．fear C．surprise D．worry
10. A．any B．all C．some D．none
11. A．read B．found C．included D．returned
12. A．prepared B．expected C．introduced D．received
— Please tell me___________.
— Next Saturday.
A．when did we have a party B．when will we have a party
C．when we had a party D．when we will have a party
These boxes ______ for keeping the food clean and cool.
A．use B．are used C．have used D．were using
