2020考研英语冲刺押题：阅读理解预测（四）

　　众所周知，在考研英语中，得阅读者，得英语，考研英语阅读是分值最高的一考题，所以考生需要掌握大量的词汇，同时要有丰富的阅读经验，尤其是外刊杂志。所以今天给大家整理了来自于英美国家的报刊杂志文章，进行2020考研英语阅读预测，希望对大家有帮助。

　　原文期刊：科学美国人

　　原文标题：Risky Teen Behavior Is Driven by an Imbalance in Brain Development

　　文章指出青少年大脑与儿童、成人的大脑均不同，具有可塑性这一特质，且大脑不同脑区的成熟速度不一致，导致青少年一方面易冲动、爱冒险，另一方面又有快速适应环境的能力。对青少年大脑的深入了解将有助于父母和社会学会分辨青春期典型行为与精神疾病，从而帮助青少年健康成长。本文属科普类文章，探讨的对象为青少年大脑这一研究热点，从青春期行为入手，话题有吸引力，值得一读。

　　PART 1

　　原文

　　I①Neuroscientists have explained the risky, aggressive or just plain baffling behavior of teenagers as the product of a brain that is somehow compromised. ②Groundbreaking research in the past 10 years, however, shows that this view is wrong. ③The teen brain is not defective.④It is not a half-baked adult brain, either. ⑤It has been forged by evolution to function differently from that of a child or an adult.

　　II①Foremost among the teen brain’s features is its ability to change in response to the environment by modifying the communication networks that connect brain regions. ②This special changeability, or plasticity, is a double-edged sword. ③It allows teenagers to make enormous strides in thinking and socialization. ④But the morphing landscape also makes them vulnerable to dangerous behaviors and serious mental disorders.

　　III①The most recent studies indicate that the riskiest behaviors arise from a mismatch between the maturation of networks in the limbic system, which drives emotions and intensifies at puberty, and the maturation of networks in the prefrontal cortex, which occurs later and promotes sound judgment and the control of impulses. ②Indeed, we now know that the prefrontal cortex continues to change prominently until well into a person’s 20s. ③And yet puberty seems to be starting earlier, extending the “mismatch years.”

　　IV①The plasticity of networks linking brain regions —— and not the growth of those regions, as previously thought —— is key to eventually behaving like an adult. ②Understanding that, and knowing that a widening gap between the development of emotional and judgment networks is happening in young people today, can help parents, teachers, counselors and teenagers themselves. ③People will better see that behaviors such as risk taking, sensation seeking, and turning away from parents and toward peers are not signs of cognitive or emotional problems.④They are a natural result of brain development, a normal part of adolescents learning how to negotiate a complex world.

　　V①The same understanding can also help adults decide when to intervene. ②A 15-year-old girl’s departure from her parents’ tastes in clothing, music or politics may be a source of consternation for Mom and Dad but does not indicate mental illness. ③A 16-year-old boy’s propensity to skateboard without a helmet or to accept risky dares from friends is not trivial but is more likely a manifestation of short-range thinking and peer pressure than a desire to hurt himself. ④Other exploratory and aggressive actions might be red flags, however.⑤Knowing more about the unique teen brain will help all of us learn how to separate unusual behavior that is age-appropriate from that which might indicate illness. ⑥Such awareness could help society reduce the rates of teen addiction, sexually transmitted diseases, motor vehicle accidents, unwanted pregnancy, homicide, depression and suicide.

　　PART 2

　　词汇短语

　　1. *baffling ['bæf(ə)lɪŋ] adj. 令人困惑的

　　2. compromise ['kɒmprəmaɪz] v. 妥协;危及，损害

　　3. defective [dɪ'fektɪv] adj. 有缺陷的

　　4. plasticity [plæ'stɪsɪtɪ] n. 可塑性

　　5. stride [straɪd] n. 大步;进步

　　6. maturation [mætjʊ'reɪʃ(ə)n] n. 成熟

　　7. limbic system 边缘系统

　　8. *puberty ['pjuːbətɪ] n.青春期

　　9. *prefrontal cortex 前额皮质

　　10. sensation [sen'seɪʃ(ə)n] n. 感觉;轰动

　　11. negotiate [nɪ'gəʊʃɪeɪt] v. 协商;顺利通过

　　12. *consternation [kɒnstə'neɪʃ(ə)n] n. 惊恐，惊慌

　　13. *propensity [prə'pensɪtɪ] n. 倾向

　　14. *homicide ['hɒmɪsaɪd] n. 杀人

　　15. double-edged sword n. 双刃剑

　　(标*为超纲词汇)

　　PART 3

　　翻译点评

　　I①Neuroscientists have explained the risky, aggressive or just plain baffling behavior of teenagers as the product of a brain that is somehow compromised. ②Groundbreaking research in the past 10 years, however, shows that this view is wrong. ③The teen brain is not defective.④It is not a half-baked adult brain, either. ⑤It has been forged by evolution to function differently from that of a child or an adult.

　　翻译：青少年不时表现出危险的或攻击性的举动，他们的很多行为常常令人大惑不解。神经科学家们曾一度认为这是大脑受损的结果。然而，过去十年间的突破性研究表明这一观点是错误的。青少年大脑并非存有缺陷，也不是尚未成熟的成人大脑。相反，它是进化过程的产物，与儿童和成人大脑的活动方式均不同。

　　点评：段I开篇点题，指出青少年大脑是与儿童和成人大脑都截然不同的独特大脑。句①指出神经学家对青春期叛逆行为的旧有解释，为后文新观点的提出做铺垫。②③④⑤句转而对①句的观点进行否定，指出青春期大脑的独特性，引出全文探讨的话题：青春期大脑。②句直接指出①句的观点有误，however一词明示句意转折。③④⑤句说明研究新发现，③④句先用两个否定句is not…和is not…either颠覆旧有认知，引起读者好奇心，⑤句正面提出青少年大脑是进化的产物，与儿童和成人的大脑均不同。

　　II①Foremost among the teen brain’s features is its ability to change in response to the environment by modifying the communication networks that connect brain regions. ②This special changeability, or plasticity, is a double-edged sword. ③It allows teenagers to make enormous strides in thinking and socialization. ④But the morphing landscape also makes them vulnerable to dangerous behaviors and serious mental disorders.

　　翻译：青少年大脑最为显著的特点是其能通过调整脑区间的网络连接以适应环境变化。这种特殊的可变性，或者说可塑性，是一把双刃剑。它可以使青少年的思考和社交能力突飞猛进。然而，这种变化也容易滋长危险行为，使他们容易患上严重的精神障碍。

　　点评：段II指出青少年大脑的特性之一：可塑性，并说明这一特性有利有弊。①句承上启下，teen brain’s features呼应上段末句function differently，同时也是段落主旨句，by后所接方式状语具体说明青少年大脑如何随环境变化。②句指出上述特性是一把双刃剑，既有利又有弊(a double-edged sword，双刃剑，写作亮点词汇)，changeability和plasticity指代①句ability to…，实现句间衔接。③④句对②句补充说明，分别指出利弊所在。

　　III①The most recent studies indicate that the riskiest behaviors arise from a mismatch between the maturation of networks in the limbic system, which drives emotions and intensifies at puberty, and the maturation of networks in the prefrontal cortex, which occurs later and promotes sound judgment and the control of impulses. ②Indeed, we now know that the prefrontal cortex continues to change prominently until well into a person’s 20s. ③And yet puberty seems to be starting earlier, extending the “mismatch years.”

　　翻译：最近的研究表明，青少年最为危险的行为源于边缘系统的脑组织与前额皮质脑组织的成熟期不一致，前者引起情绪反应，在青春期时快速发育成熟，而负责理智判断和冲动控制的后者发育较晚。实际上，我们现已知道人类的前额皮质直到20多岁还在不断发生显著变化。而如今，青春期似乎越来越提前，使得这段“不一致时间”比以前更长。

　　点评：段III指出最新研究表明大脑边缘系统与前额皮质的成熟速度不一致，导致青春期的危险行为。①句为过渡句，the riskiest behaviors承接上文vulnerable to dangerous behaviors。本句主要信息为the riskiest behaviors arise from a mismatch between the maturation of networks in the limbic system and the maturation of networks in the prefrontal cortex，两个which引导的非限定性定语从句对limbic system和prefrontal cortex的功能和成熟时间作补充说明。②③句进一步指出两者成熟的时间跨度在不断扩大。

　　IV①The plasticity of networks linking brain regions —— and not the growth of those regions, as previously thought —— is key to eventually behaving like an adult. ②Understanding that, and knowing that a widening gap between the development of emotional and judgment networks is happening in young people today, can help parents, teachers, counselors and teenagers themselves. ③People will better see that behaviors such as risk taking, sensation seeking, and turning away from parents and toward peers are not signs of cognitive or emotional problems.④They are a natural result of brain development, a normal part of adolescents learning how to negotiate a complex world.

　　翻译：各脑区间连接网络的可塑性——而非之前所认为的脑区的成长成熟——是青少年最终是否成年的关键。理解这一点，并意识到如今青少年大脑中控制情感与判断的神经网络的发育程度在不断扩大，将对父母、老师、辅导员和青少年自身都大有帮助。人们将能更正确地看待冒险、寻求刺激、疏远父母、转向同伴等行为，认识到这些行为并非认知和情感问题的表现，而是大脑发育的自然结果，是青少年学习如何适应复杂世界的正常行为。

　　点评：段IV和段V指出研究新发现的意义。段IV指出意义之一：认识到青少年大脑的可塑性与不同脑区的成熟时间差异有助于父母、老师和青少年正确认识青春期的种种行为。句①指出脑区间连接网络的可塑性是决定青少年是否成年的关键，破折号中为插入语，指出以往的错误认识。句②指出上述认识(II、III段)的意义，句中that指代①句，emotional and judgment networks指代III段中networks in the limbic system和networks in the prefrontal cortex。③④句补充说明②句，指出青春期的诸多叛逆行为并非认知或情感出现问题，而是大脑发育的自然结果。

　　V①The same understanding can also help adults decide when to intervene. ②A 15-year-old girl’s departure from her parents’ tastes in clothing, music or politics may be a source of consternation for Mom and Dad but does not indicate mental illness. ③A 16-year-old boy’s propensity to skateboard without a helmet or to accept risky dares from friends is not trivial but is more likely a manifestation of short-range thinking and peer pressure than a desire to hurt himself. ④Other exploratory and aggressive actions might be red flags, however.⑤Knowing more about the unique teen brain will help all of us learn how to separate unusual behavior that is age-appropriate from that which might indicate illness. ⑥Such awareness could help society reduce the rates of teen addiction, sexually transmitted diseases, motor vehicle accidents, unwanted pregnancy, homicide, depression and suicide.

　　翻译：上述认识还可以帮助成年人决定何时作出干预。一位15岁女孩违背父母的穿着、音乐和政治品味，可能会让她的父母感到惊慌，但这并不意味着她患上了精神疾病。一个16岁男孩喜欢不戴头盔玩滑板，或是总是接受朋友的冒险挑战，虽然这些并非无关紧要，但更有可能只是缺乏远见或迫于同辈压力的体现，而不是想要伤害自己。然而，其他一些探索性和攻击性行为可能就是危险信号。了解更多青少年大脑的独特性将帮助我们学会分辨这些异常行为是符合年龄的举动还是疾病的征兆，也将帮助社会降低青少年成瘾、性传播疾病、机动车事故、意外怀孕、杀人、抑郁和自杀的比率。

　　点评：段V承接上段②句，继续说明文中的两点认识将如何帮助父母和社会。①句指出意义之二：帮助成年人决定干预时机，intervene，If you intervene in a situation, you become involved in it and try to change it. 干预。②③④句具体补充说明①句，分别举例指出何种行为是青春期的正常行为，何种行为应引起注意。⑤句总结②③④句。⑥句呼应①句，指出通过成年人的干预可以帮助青少年健康成长，帮助社会减少青少年成瘾等危险行为的比率。

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