02 人与社会之历史，社会与文化
Passage 1
（2024·浙江·高考真题）The Stanford marshmallow(棉花糖) test was originally
conducted by psychologist Walter Mischel in the late 1960s. Children aged four to six at a nursery
school were placed in a room. A single sugary treat, selected by the child, was placed on a table.
Each child was told if they waited for 15 minutes before eating the treat, they would be given a
second treat. Then they were left alone in the room. Follow-up studies with the children later in
life showed a connect ion between an ability to wait long enough to obtain a second treat and
various forms of success.
As adults, we face a version( 版本 ) of the marshmallow test every day. We’re not
tempted(诱惑) by sugary treats, but by our computers, phones, and tablets —all the devices that
connect us to the global delivery system for various types of information that do to us what
marshmallows do to preschoolers.
We are tempted by sugary treats because our ancestors lived in a calorie-poor world, and
our brains developed a response mechanism(机制) to these treats that reflected their value —a
feeling of reward and satisfaction. But as we’ve reshaped the world around us, dramatically
reducing the cost and effort involved in obtaining(获取) calories, we still have the same brains we
had thousands of years ago, and this mismatch(不匹配) is at the heart of why so many of us
struggle to resist (抵抗) tempting foods that we know we shouldn’t eat.
A similar process is at work in our response to information. Our formative(有重大影响的)
environment as a species was information-poor, so our brains developed a mechanism that
prized(高度重视) new information. But global connectivity has greatly changed our information
environment. We are now endlessly bombarded(轰炸) with new information. Therefore, just as we
need to be more thoughtful(深思熟虑的) about our caloric consumption(热量消耗), we also need
to be more thoughtful about our information consumption, resisting the temptation of the mental
“junk food” in order to manage our time most effectively.
1．What did the children need to do to get a second treat in Mischel’s test?
A．Take an examination alone. B．Show respect for the researchers.
C．Share their treats with others. D．Delay eating for fifteen minutes.2．According to paragraph 3, there is a mismatch between ______.
A．the calorie-poor world and our good appetites B．the shortage of sugar and our
nutritional needs
C．the rich food supply and our unchanged brains D．the tempting foods and our efforts to
keep fit
3．What does the author suggest readers do?
A．Absorb new information readily(欣然地).B．Use diverse information sources.
C．Be selective information consumers. D．Protect the information environment.
4．Which of the following is the best title for the text?
A．Eat Less, Read More B．The Bitter Truth about Early Humans
C．The Marshmallow Test for Grownups D．The Marshmallow Test for Children.
Passage 2
（23-24高二上·全国·课后作业）This year over twenty-three hundred teenagers (young
people aged from 13-19) from all over the world will spend about ten months in US homes. They
will attend US schools, meet US teenagers, and form impressions of the real America. At the same
time, about thirteen hundred American teenagers will go to other countries to learn new languages
and gain a new understanding of the rest of the world.
Here is a two-way student exchange in action. Fred, nineteen, spent last year in Germany
with George’s family. In turn, George’s son Mike spent a year in Fred’s home in America.
Fred, a lively young man, knew little German when he arrived, but after two months’ study
the language began to come to him. School was completely different from what he had expected—
much harder. Students rose respectfully when the teacher entered the room. They took fourteen
subjects instead of the six that were usual in the United States. There were almost no outside
activities.
Family life, too, was different. The father’s word was law, and all activities were around the
family rather than the individual. Fred found the food too simple at first. Also, he missed having a
car. “Back home, you pick up some friends in a car and go out and have a good time. In Germany,
you walk, but you soon learn to like it.”
At the same time, in America, Mike, a friendly German boy, was also forming his idea.“I
suppose I should criticise American schools,” he said. “It is far too easy by our level. But I have tosay that I like it very much.In Germany we do nothing but study. Here we take part in many
outside activities. I think that maybe your schools are better in training for citizens. There ought to
be some middle ground between the two.”
5．What’s Mike’s attitude towards American education?
A．Praise. B．Regret.
C．Ignore. D．Accuse.
6．What’s the purpose of the whole exchange program?
A．To help teenagers in other countries know the real America.
B．To send students in America to travel in Germany.
C．To let students learn something about other countries.
D．To have teenagers learn new languages.
7．What is particular in American schools?
A．There is some middle ground between the two teaching buildings.
B．There are a lot of outside activities.
C．Students usually take 14 subjects in all.
D．Students go outside to enjoy themselves in a car.
8．What did Mike think after experiencing the American school life?
A．A better education should include something good from both America and Germany.
B．German schools trained students to be better citizens.
C．American schools were not as good as German schools.
D．The easy life in American schools was more helpful to students.
Passage 3
（23-24高三上·湖北·阶段练习）I’m a grandma in my 60s. In the spring of 2020, like the
rest of the world, I spent a lot of time staring at a screen and that was when I first got into the
YouTube world. I discovered that onscreen offerings were truly endless. From one YouTuber I
learned how to plant my own vegetable garden. Someone else shared poetry from Robert Frost,
wise sayings from Confucius, and a smattering (一知半解) of other philosophical viewpoints, all
of which helped me through some dark days. Down the rabbit hole I went, scrolling for hours and
hours, watching other people living their lives and giving me advice on how to live mine.
As the months rolled by, YouTube turned my attention away from the hard reality of whatwas going on in the world. I subscribed to several channels and waited anxiously for new weekly
offerings. I watched people reading poetry or painting by streams or looking out windows into
snowy landscapes. I found all this calming. Such lovely scenery, such beautiful background music,
such pretty clothes they were wearing!
At some point though, I got upset by these artistic and seemingly perfect lives. Who is
filming them? I wondered. Do they rehearse or just act on the spot? Isn’t it cold, stepping through
snowbanks in dresses? The questions kept bothering me while forcing comparisons to my own
somewhat more ordinary existence. I wanted to walk in a flowing dress through hilly green field
filled with wildflowers! Instead, I was marching through my neighborhood’s city streets in mom
jeans.
In a moment of insight, I realized that I had a full and happy life, which although it wouldn’t
win awards for perfection onscreen, suited me perfectly. I put my phone away and started paying
attention to my own life instead of watching other people live theirs. I still like checking in once in
a while. YouTube can be a rich source of entertainment and inspiration, but I’ve limited my
exposure. I am content with the knowledge that my addiction to life onscreen has been replaced by
life itself.
9．What can be learned about the author in the spring of 2020?
A．She experienced some hard times.
B．She taught others about gardening.
C．She developed an interest in poetry.
D．She shared her philosophical views online.
10．What effect did YouTube have on the author according to paragraph 2?
A．It made her more anxious.
B．It improved her taste in art.
C．It taught her to accept reality.
D．It brought some comfort to her.
11．How did the artistic lives presented on YouTube make the author feel?
A．Desperate. B．Connected. C．Envious. D．Proud.
12．What has the author decided to do in the end?
A．Seek inspiration from YouTube.
B．Stop using her phone in daily life.C．Focus on her own life instead of others’.
D．Continue watching other people’s lives.
Passage 4
（22-23高一下·江西南昌·阶段练习）One morning soon, you’ll get on your bike and ride
from one end of America to the other, because the Great American Rail Trail is 53% complete,
making a cross-country bike ride closer to a reality.
The idea of a bike trail(小路) made up of scenic paths, trails and former rail lines from
Washington DC to Washington State has been 30 years in the making. Now, with more than 50%
of the trail up and running, the project, run by the Rails to Trails in cooperation with local
authorities, is building up, with hundreds of miles of trails in development now. Though not
entirely complete, the rail trail has drawn people of all types.
Last August, Ryan Gardill and a colleague biked 350 miles from Pittsburgh to Washington
DC． Their travels took them through some beautiful and historical parts of the American East.
“The trail connected me to our revolutionary and industrial history. Most of the towns on the trail
were once important to America.”
The major goal of the trail is to provide the American public with the opportunity to explore
their beautiful country, without getting in their car. A secondary objective is to bring prosperity(繁
荣) back to the small towns and cities that once prospered along the country’s now diminished
rail system, according to National Geographic.
One of these is Muncie, Indiana, a city located on a former rail system and a part of the Rail
Trail. The city is already seeing the economic benefits of the trail. “A large majority of our
customers are local, but the Rail Trail could help grow tourism,” said Jason Allardt, owner of the
historic Kirk’s Bike Shop.
This is the hope for many once-prosperous towns and cities all throughout America, though it
may take nearly 20 years to get the entire trail up and running.
13．What has made the trail attractive to people?
A．It’s a bike trail with good scenery. B．It’s a rail line across the country.
C．It offers good adventurous paths. D．Its construction lasted 30 years.
14．What can be inferred about most towns along the trail?
A．They were the basic part of the U.S. railways.B．They are mostly located in the mountains.
C．They enjoy great popularity as destinations.
D．They’re no longer important towns in America.
15．What does the underlined word “diminished” mean in Para. 4?
A．Enlarged. B．Protected. C．Decreased. D．Destroyed.
16．What can we learn about the city Muncie?
A．The Trail will link its scenery to the outside. B．The Trail will help its economic
recovery.
C．It has bike paths designed for local citizens. D．The railway has brought about its
prosperity.
Passage 5
（23-24高三下·河南·阶段练习）The National Heritage Responders is a volunteer network
of around 100 experts in cultural heritage conservation from around Puerto Rico. They assist
individuals and institutions in figuring out how to save important objects and buildings after
disasters. Their crisis hotline has been busier than ever in recent years because of more frequent
and severe weather brought on by climate change. In 2023, there have been around 70 calls so far,
up from fewer than 10 in 2008, when the hotline first appeared.
Ann Frellsen, the Atlanta-based book and paper conservator, is a longtime heritage
responder volunteer with more than three decades of experience in helping out cultural institutions
after disasters. She was among those sent to Puerto Rico over several visits starting a couple of
months after two hurricanes hit it in 2017.
After providing initial support via the phone, Frellsen and her team came in to help La Casa
del Libro and other local institutions in crisis with equipment, supplies and advice. In fact, much
of the advice the hotline provides is via phone or video-chat; volunteers are sent out into the field
in certain cases, on an as-needed basis.
“There were no stoplights and signs on the highways because they’d all been blown away,”
Frellsen said. She added that figuring out how to reach the more than 20 institutions that needed
assistance in Puerto Rico was challenging—not to mention the on-the-job hazards.
When Frellsen isn’t heading into disaster zones to help save artifacts (文物) from fires,
hurricanes and floods, she trains others in the heritage conservation field to do the same. Some ofthe participants may eventually take the test to become National Heritage Responders. But at this
moment, they are deep in a hands-on training exercise, based on an imaginary situation cooked up
by Frellsen and her co-trainers.
17．What can we say about Puerto Rico?
A．It calls on people to keep in contact. B．Natural disasters are increasing there.
C．It works hard to build highways. D．The weather is really nice there.
18．What can be learned about the National Heritage Responders?
A．It teaches individuals how to protect themselves.
B．New volunteers can join it with no tests required.
C．Victims all over the world can contact it by hotline.
D．It sends experts to the disaster areas when necessary.
19．What does the underlined word “hazards” in paragraph 4 mean?
A．Dangers. B．Skills. C．Trainings. D．Rights.
20．What are Frellsen and her team busy doing at present?
A．Taking various tests. B．Entering a new disaster area.
C．Conducting a practical exercise. D．Restoring priceless artifacts.
