2015年考研英语阅读理解考前专项训练（75）
发布时间：2012/11/2 13:17:48 来源：城市网学院 编辑：admin
One of the remarkable things about laughter is that it occurs unconsciously.You don't decide to do it.While we can consciously inhibit it，we don't consciously produce laughter.That's why it's very hard to laugh on #mand or to fake laughter.
Laughter provides powerful，uncensored insights into our unconscious.It simply bubbles up from within us in certain situations.
Very little is known about the specific brain mechanisms responsible for laughter.But we do know that laughter is triggered by many sensations and thoughts，and that it activates many parts of the body.①
When we laugh，we alter our facial expressions and make sounds.During exuberant laughter，the muscles of the arms，legs and trunk are involved.Laughter also requires modification in our pattern of breathin9.We also know that laughter is a message that we send to other people.We know this beca use we rarely laugh when we are alone.
Laughter is social and contagious.We laugh at the sound of laughter itself.
The first laughter appears at about 3.5 t0 4 months of age，long before we're able to speak.② Laughter，like cryin9，is a way for a preverbal infant to interact with the mother and other caregivers.
Contrary to folk wisdom，most laughter is not about humor；it is about relationships between people。To find out when and why people laugh，I and several undergraduate research assistants went to local mails and city sidewalks and recorded what happened j ust before people laughed.③0ver a loyear period，we studied over 2，000 cases of naturally occurring laughter.
We found that most laughter does not follow jokes.People laugh after a variety of statements such as“Hey John。where ya been?”“Here #es Mary，”“How did you do on the test?''and”Do you have a rubber band?“。These certainly aren't jokes.
We don't decide tO laugh at these moments.Our brain makes the decision for US.These curious”haha ha'S“are bits of social glue that bond relationships.
Curiously，laughter seldom interrupts the sentence structure of speech.It punctuates speech.We 0nly laugh during pauses when we would cough or breathe.
When we laugh，we're often #municating playful intent.So laughter has a bonding function within individuals in a group.It'S often positive，but it can be negative t00.There'S a difference between”laughing with''and“laughing at”。People who laugh at others may be trying tO force them to conform or casting them out of the group.
No one has actually counted how much people of different ages laugh，but young children probably laugh the most.At ages 5 and 6，we tend tO see the most exuberant laughs.Adults laugh less than children，probably because they play less.And laughter is associated with play. [459 words]
1.“You don't decide tO do it.”in the first paragraph most probably means that______.
A.you are reluctant tO laugh
B.you laugh without consciousness
C.you cannot inhibit your laughter
D.you are not prepared for laughing in public
2.We laugh when______.
A.we are not alone
B.we hear the word of laughter
C.we hear somebody else laughing
D.we modify our pattern of breathing
3.According tO this passage，laughter is frequently triggered simply by______.
A.jokes
B.folk wisdom
C.what one thinks himself
D.what other people say
4.It can be inferred from the study over 2，000 cases of naturally occurring laughter that______.
A.1aughter is rarely natural
B.most laughter is social
C.1aughter is tO enliven the speech
D.the ability tO laugh is inherent
5.This passage is mainly about______.
A.when and why we laugh
B.general features of laughter
C.the brain mechanisms of laughter
D.an evolutionary perspective of laughter [NextPage] 难句解析
①But we do know [that laughter is triggered by many sensations and thoughts]，and [that it activates many parts of the body].
【结构】两个方括号所标示的部分是谓语动词“know”的两个并列的宾语从句。“do”强调“know”。
【释义】但是，我们确实知道，很多情感和想法都能引人发笑，而且笑声能刺激身体的很多部分。
②The first laughter appears at about 3.5 to 4 months of age，[tong beforg we're able to speak].
【结构】方括号所标示的是时间状语从句。
【释义】小孩大约3个半月到4个月大就开始会笑，比开口说话早得多。
③[To find out（when and why people laugh）]，I and several undergraduate research assistants“‘went to local malls and city sidewalks and recorded[-what happened（just before people laughed）].
【结构】第一个方括号所标示的动词不定式用做目的状语。”went to“和”recorded“是并列的谓语动词。第二个方括号所标示的是”recorded“的宾语从句。
【释义】为了弄清人何时发笑，为什么会笑，我和几个大学生研究助手来到当地的购物商场和城区的人行道，记录人笑之前究竟发生了什么事。
④People[who laugh at others]may be trying to force them to conform or”'casting them out of the group.
【结构】方括号所标示的后置定语从句，修饰“people”。现在分词“trying”和“casting”并列，构成谓语的组成部分。
【释义】嘲笑他人的人可能是想迫使别人顺从自己，或者把别人排挤出圈外。
全文翻译
关于笑最让人不可思议的就是它通常在人们无意识的情况下发生。你无法决定是否要笑。虽然我们可以有意识地抑制住笑意，但是我们无法刻意制造出笑来。这就是为什么即使有命令或者是有意伪装也笑不出来的原因。
笑为我们提供了有力的，且无所限制的对我们潜意识的深刻了解。它在某些特定情况下很容易就从我们内心中涌现出来了。
我们对大脑中具体负责笑的反应机制知道得并不多。但是，我们确实知道，很多情感和想法都能引人发笑，而且笑声能刺激身体的很多部分。
我们如果发笑，那我们的面部表情会随之改变并同时发出声音。在开怀大笑时，手臂和腿部肌肉，甚至全身肌肉都会随之运动。笑还需要我们改变呼吸的模式。我们也明白笑是我们向别人传递的一种信息。我们之所以知道是因为在我们独身一人的时候很少会发笑。笑是社会性的并且具有传染力。在听到别人的笑声时我们自己也会笑起来。
小孩大约3个半月到4个月大就开始会笑，比开口说话早得多。笑就如同哭一样，是还不会说话的婴儿和其母亲或其他看护者之间的一种交流方式。
和平常人们所认识的相反，笑通常并不是因为幽默而产生；它所反映的是人与人之问的关系。为了弄清人何时发笑，为什么会笑，我和几个大学生研究助手来到当地的购物商场和城区的人行道，记录人笑之前究竟发生了什么事。o在10年之间，我们研究了2000多例自然发生的笑。
我们发现多数笑并不是在听了笑话之后才发生的。人们在听到各类话语之后都有可能发笑，这些话语包括“嘿，约翰，你这两天上哪儿啦？…’玛莉来啦，”“你考得怎么样？”以及“你有橡皮擦吗？”等等。这些明显不是笑话。在这些情况下我们并不是自主决定要笑。我们的大脑为我们做好了决定。这些难以理解的“哈哈哈”就如同社交中的胶水，粘连起了人们之间的联系。
令人难以理解的是，发笑很少打断说话时话语的结构。它可作为话语中的停顿。我们只在可能要咳嗽或换气这样的间隙停下来笑一笑。
当我们嬉笑的时候，通常也带着开玩笑的意图。所以笑也对一个团队中的人与人起到了联系的作用。通常情况下它的效果是正面的，但也存在负面的影响。“一起笑”和“嘲笑”之间还是存在差别的。嘲笑他人的人可能是想迫使别人顺从自己，或者把别人排挤出圈外。
没有人统计过每个年龄段有多少人经常笑，但是小孩子可能是笑得最多的。在孩子5、6岁的时候，我们能看见他们最灿烂的笑容。成年人则比孩子笑得少，这可能是因为他们玩乐得少。而笑往往是和玩乐联系在一起的。
超纲词汇
Contagious adj.会感染的
exuberant 充满活力的
fake vi.／n.伪造
inhibit vt.抑制，约束
mall n.购物商场
trigger vt.／n.引发，触发
uncensored未经审查的，无保留的
参考答案：1.B 2.C 3.D 4.B 5.A
