Question

    Will people remember less with Internet users becoming more and more dependent on the Internet to store information? If you know your computer will save information, why do you store it in your own personal memory, your brain?

Professor Betsy Sparrow, together with her research team, has carried out some experiments in a recent study, wanting to know how the Internet is changing memory. In the first experiment, they offered people 40 unimportant facts to type into a computer. The first group of people understood that the computer would save the information. The second group understood that the computer would not save it. Later, the second group remembered the information better. People in the first group knew they could find the information again, so they did not try to remember it.

In another experiment, the researchers gave people facts to remember, and told them where to find the information on the computer. The information was in a specific computer folder( 文 件 夹 ). Surprisingly, people later remembered the folder locations better than the facts. When people use the Internet, they do not remember the information. Rather, they remember how to find it. This is called “transactive memory(交互记忆)”.

According to Sparrow, we are not becoming people with poor memories as a result of the Internet.

Instead, computer users are developing stronger transactive memories; that is, people are learning how to organize huge quantities of information so that they are able to access it at a later date. This doesn’t mean we are becoming either more or less intelligent, but there is no doubt that the way we use memory is changing.

1.Why does the text begin with two questions?

A.To make a comparison. B.To introduce the main topic.

C.To show the author’s attitude. D.To list some examples.

2.What can we learn about the first experiment?

A.The Sparrow’s team typed the information into a computer.

B.The two groups remembered the information equally well.

C.The first group did not try to remember the information.

D.The second group did not understand the information.

3.What do people usually do in transactive memory?

A.They remember how to find the information.

B.They organize information like a computer.

C.They change the quantity of information.

D.They bear the information in mind.

4.What is Sparrow’s attitude towards the influence the Internet has on people’s memory ?

A.Negative. B.Passive. C.Objective. D.Doubtful.

Answer

1.B

2.C

3.A

4.C

【解析】

这是一篇说明文。文章主要讲的是互联网给人的记忆带来的影响。科学家通过实验证明了即使互联网使用者越来越依赖互联网来储存信息，这样并不意味着我们的记忆能力越来越弱，因为同时我们交互记忆的能力越来越强。互联网只是改变了我们记忆的方式。

1.推理判断题。文章第一段提出两个问题：互联网越来越多的依靠网络来存储信息会导致人们记忆的东西越来越少吗？如果你知道计算机会为你存储这些信息，你为什么还要用大脑自己记住呢？第一个问题提出环境the internet，第二句提出主题store it in your own personal memory，这两点与第二段提出的本文的中心问题“wanting to know how the Internet is changing memory（想知道网络如何改变记忆）”呼应，所以这两个问题都是为了引出本文主题。故选B。

2.细节理解题。由第二段中的“People in the first group knew they could find the information again, so they did not try to remember it.（第一组的人知道他们一会还可以再找到这些信息，因此他们没有去尝试记住它们）”可知，第一组的人没有去尝试记住这些信息。故选C。

3.细节理解题。由第三段中的Rather, they remember how to find it. This is called “transactive memory”（然而，他们记住如何去找到它。这被叫做交互记忆。）可知，在交互记忆中，人们记住如何去找到信息。故选A。

4.推理判断题。由最后一段中的“This doesn’t mean we are becoming either more or less intelligent, but there is no doubt that the way we use memory is changing.（这不意味着我们变得更聪明或者变得不聪明，但是毫无疑问我们记忆的方式正在改变）”可知，作者对网络对人们记忆的影响的描述是很客观的。A. Negative否定的；B. Passive被动的；C. Objective客观的； D. Doubtful怀疑的。故选C。