Question

    Imagine this. There's an apple and a piece of cake on a table. Which one would you like? The delicious cake or the healthy apple? A bestseller, Willpower: Rediscovering Our Greatest Strength, suggests that willpower(意志力)is the ability to make decisions that are better for us in the long term, rather than in the short term.

Here is a famous experiment in the book: The Marshmallow Test. In 1972, Professor Walter Mischel tested the willpower of 600 four-year-olds to six-year-olds. In the experiment, each child was left alone in a room for fifteen minutes with a marshmallow(棉花软糖）on a table in front of them. They were given two choices: they could either eat it or, if they waited fifteen minutes, they'd be given a second one(and then they could eat both).

So, what did the kids do? Well, as you can imagine, 70% ate the first marshmallow within the fifteen minutes. But the other 30% showed willpower—they controlled themselves and waited for the second marshmallow. But then Mischel discovered something really interesting. Twenty years later, he got in touch with the children, who, by then, were in their early twenties. And he found that those who'd shown strong willpower were getting better marks at university and were more popular.

Willpower is like a muscle（肌肉), and the more you exercise it, the stronger it gets.

So, if you do daily "self-control exercises", such as making your bed or brushing your teeth, you'll improve your overall willpower. And daily willpower exercises will help you with those bigger goals, such as studying for an exam or training for a marathon.

Be careful though. Just like any muscle, your "willpower muscle" can get tired. If you've had to do lots of things that require willpower, take a break or give yourself a treat.

That way, you’ll build up your willpower again.

And one last thing, the writer mentions people who learn foreign languages usually have a lot of willpower. So, congratulations!

1.How many children got two marshmallows in the Marshmallow Test in 1972?

A.180. B.240. C.420. D.600.

2.In Paragraphs 2&3, the famous experiment explains __________.

A.more kids have stronger willpower

B.willpower influences people's lives greatly

C.how people practice children's willpower

D.marshmallows can help improve willpower

3.The writer probably agrees that ________.

A.all the language learners have stronger willpower

B.will power can't be improved by doing some daily things

C.young kids don't need to practice willpower like grown-ups

D.people with strong willpower can achieve their goals more easily

4.According to the passage, people who ________ might have strong willpower.

A.do regular piano practice every day B.give up morning running halfway

C.eat as much junk food as they like D.usually get up late on the cold morning

Answer

1.A

2.B

3.D

4.A

【解析】

文章大意：畅销书《意志力:重新发现我们最大的力量》指出，意志力是一种能力，它能做出长期而非短期对我们更有利的决定。文章通过一个著名的实验说明了意志力对人们生活的影响。并告诉我们如何来提高我们的整体意志力。

1.

推理判断题。根据In 1972, Professor Walter Mischel tested the willpower of 600 four-year-olds to six-year-olds.以及But the other 30% showed willpower—they controlled themselves and waited for the second marshmallow.可知，在1972的棉花糖测试中，共有600个孩子参加，其中有30%的孩子得到了两个棉花糖，也就是180个孩子，故答案选A。

2.

理解判断题。根据But then Mischel discovered something really interesting. Twenty years later, he got in touch with the children, who, by then, were in their early twenties. And he found that those who'd shown strong willpower were getting better marks at university and were more popular. 但随后Mischel发现了一件非常有趣的事情。二十年后，他与孩子们取得了联系，那时他们才二十出头。他发现那些表现出强烈意志力的人在大学里成绩更好，也更受欢迎。由此可知，这个著名的实验说明了意志力对人们生活的影响很大。故答案选B。

3.

细节理解题。根据And daily willpower exercises will help you with those bigger goals, 每天的意志力训练会帮助你实现更大的目标。可知作者应同意有坚强意志力的人更容易实现他们的目标，故答案选D。

4.

推理判断题。根据So, if you do daily "self-control exercises", such as making your bed or brushing your teeth, you'll improve your overall willpower.所以，如果你每天做“自我控制练习”，比如整理床铺或刷牙，你就会提高你的整体意志力。也就是说你每天固定的去做一件事情，你就会有很强的意志力。结合选项，可知A选项“每天有规律地练习钢琴”符合题意，故答案选A。