Question

    Summer brings flowers and dirt and barbeque smoke. In the most wintery places, there isn’t much outside on cold days except snow, strong wind and cars warming up. Pine needles, wood smoke and snow---these are the smells of winter, and for people who live with different seasons, wintry weather brings its own set of olfactory(嗅觉的) experiences. But why does the cold of winter smell different from the heat of summer?

One reason is that odor (气味) molecules move much more slowly as the air temperature drops, said Pamela Dalton, an olfactory scientist at the Monell Chemical Senses Center in Philadelphia. That means that there are simply fewer smells to smell on a cold, crisp day than there are on a hot and humid one. It’s the same reason why hot soup smells more than cold soup does and why the garbage truck leaves behind the strongest smells on steamy summer days.

What’s more, our noses don’t work quite well when the surrounding air is cold, Dalton said. In experiments that require biopsies(活组织检查) of olfactory receptors that lie deep inside the nose, researchers at Monell have discovered that the receptors “bury themselves a little more deeply in the nose in winter,” she said, “possibly as a protective response against cold, dry air.”

There is a strong psychological factor in our sense of smell, Hirsch added, and what we expect to smell has a big influence on what we actually smell. In The Invalid’s Story by Mark Twain, for example, a man is stuck on a train next to what he thinks is a rotting dead body but is actually a box of cheese that smells extremely unpleasant. So strongly affected by the smell, he spends too long looking for fresh air on the freezing platform and develops a fever that ends up killing him. “What you think of a smell have powerful effects on you whether you like it and whatever you think it to be,” Hirsch said. “So, if you go outside in winter and you are used to smelling snow or nuts in the fire or whatever you happen to smell outside, that’s what you will interpret smells to be.”

To cope with lack of smells in winter, many people try to burn more candles with pleasant smell, cook more sweet stews(炖菜) and bake more cookies, which creates a greater contrast between the indoor and outdoor environments. “You’re probably fond of indoor smells in the winter,” Dalton said. “Homes are closed up, and windows are closed. We concentrate on the smells of cooking and living.”

1.According to the second paragraph, Pamela Dalton will probably agree that _________.

A.air temperature affects smells’ spreading direction greatly

B.hot soup is more popular with people in winter than cold soup

C.there are not many smells available to be smelled in winter

D.a garbage truck is easier to break down in cold winter

2.The author used the story written by Mark Twain to show that _________.

A.one can easily feel terrible smell in a small space

B.one’s mind and thoughts can affect the sense of smell

C.no one can survive when there is lack of fresh air

D.one’s opinion on smell is quite different from others

3.Which of the following is NOT the measure people take to deal with lack of smells in winter?

A.Closing doors and windows B.Cooking stews

C.Burning candles D.Baking cookies

Answer

1.C

2.B

3.A

【解析】

这是一篇说明文。文章解释了人们在寒冷的冬天闻到的气味总是不如在炎热的夏天闻到的那么浓烈这一现象的原因。

1.推理判断题。根据第二段中“That means that there are simply fewer smells to smell on a cold, crisp day than there are on a hot and humid one.”可知，在Pamela Dalton看来，随着温度升高，气味分子就扩散得越快，在一个寒冷、清爽的日子里，闻起来的气味比在湿热的日子里要少得多，由此判断出温度较低的冬天不容易闻到很多味道这一结论是比较符合他的看法的。故选C项。

2.推理判断题。根据第四段第一句“There is a strong psychological factor in our sense of smell, Hirsch added, and what we expect to smell has a big influence on what we actually smell.”可知，本段提出的观点就是心理因素对于气味感知的影响，列举马克吐温写的故事正是为了佐证这一观点，B选项“一个人的思绪和想法可能会影响气味感知”符合本段观点。故选B项。

3.细节理解题。根据最后一段第一句“To cope with lack of smells in winter, many people try to burn more candles with pleasant smell, cook more sweet stews(炖菜) and bake more cookies, which creates a greater contrast between the indoor and outdoor environments.”可知，在冬天，为了应对气味的缺乏，很多人尝试多点香味浓郁的蜡烛，多做甜炖菜，多烤饼干，使得室内和室外的环境反差更大。所以B、C、D三个选项中提及的措施在文中都有涉及。故A选项“关闭门窗”不是人们在冬天处理缺乏气味时所采取的措施。故选A项。