2019年英语四级阅读理解专项练习（二十）

　　Being sociable looks like a good way to add years to your life. Relationships with family, friends, neighbours, even pets, will all do the trick, but the biggest longevity (长寿) boost seems to come from marriage or an equivalent relationship. The effect was first noted in 1858 by William Farr, who wrote that widows and widowers (鳏夫) were at a much higher risk of dying than their married peers. Studies since then suggest that marriage could add as much as seven years to a man’s life and two to a woman’s. The effect holds for all causes of death, whether illness, accident or self-harm.

　　Even if the odds are stacked against you, marriage can more than compensate. Linda Waite of the University of Chicago has found that a married older man with heart disease can expect to live nearly four years longer than an unmarried man with a healthy heart. Likewise, a married man who smokes more than a pack a day is likely to live as long as a divorced man who doesn’t smoke. There’s a flip side, however, as partners are more likely to become ill or die in the couple of years following their spouse’s death, and caring for a spouse with mental disorder can leave you with some of the same severe problems. Even so, the odds favour marriage. In a 30-year study of more than 10,000 people, Nicholas Christakis of Harvard Medical School describes how all kinds of social networks have similar effects.

　　So how does it work? The effects are complex, affected by socio-economic factors, health-service provision, emotional support and other more physiological (生理的) mechanisms. For example, social contact can boost development of the brain and immune system, leading to better health and less chance of depression later in life. People in supportive relationships may handle stress better. Then there are the psychological benefits of a supportive partner.

　　A life partner, children and good friends are all recommended if you aim to live to 100. The ultimate social network is still being mapped out, but Christakis says: “People are interconnected, so their health is interconnected.”

　　62. William Farr’s study and other studies show that _________.

　　[A] social life provides an effective cure for illness

　　[B] being sociable helps improve one’s quality of life

　　[C] women benefit more than men from marriage

　　[D] marriage contributes a great deal to longevity

　　63. Linda Waite’s studies support the idea that _________.

　　[A] older men should quit smoking to stay healthy

　　[B] marriage can help make up for ill health

　　[C] the married are happier than the unmarried

　　[D] unmarried people are likely to suffer in later life

　　64. It can be inferred from the context that the “flip side” (Line 4, Para. 2) refers to _________.

　　[A] the disadvantages of being married

　　[B] the emotional problems arising from marriage

　　[C] the responsibility of taking care of one’s family

　　[D] the consequence of a broken marriage

　　65. What does the author say about social networks?

　　[A] They have effects similar to those of a marriage.

　　[B] They help develop people’s community spirit.

　　[C] They provide timely support for those in need.

　　[D] They help relieve people of their life’s burdens.

　　66. What can be inferred from the last paragraph?

　　[A] It’s important that we develop a social network when young.

　　[B] To stay healthy, one should have a proper social network.

　　[C] Getting a divorce means risking a reduced life span.

　　[D] We should share our social networks with each other.

　　62.

　　选择D项。

　　根据题目中的关键词Willian Farr找到对应的出题段落——文章第一段。根据文章第一段中the biggest longevity(长寿) boost seems to come from marriage…直接可以得知D项正确。A项“交际活动能有效治疗疾病”和B项“好交际能提高一个人的生活质量”在文中找不到依据，文章的重点是讲述交际活动(主要是夫妻间)对于寿命的积极作用;由文中marriage could add as much as seven years to a man's life and two to a woman's可知C项错误。

　　63.

　　选择B项。

　　由关键词Linda Waite锁定本题的出题源应该在第二段。由第二段中的两个例子：一是患有心脏疾病的已婚老人要比没有相关疾病的未婚老人寿命长约4年;二是一个每天要抽一包多香烟的已婚老人和一个从不吸烟的离过婚的老人寿命几乎一样长。可以推断出B项“婚姻有助于人的身体健康。”A项“为了身体健康老人应戒烟”并不是

　　Linda Waite的研究发现;C、D两项在文中找不到依据。

　　64.

　　选择A项。

　　由问题中的关键词flip side找到此题的出题源——文章第二段。flip side的字面意思是“反面，对立面”，第二段短语flip side前面讲了两个例子来说明婚姻对老年人身体健康的积极意义(见63题解析)，后面用however一转，又给了两个研究发现：一、夫妻双方当其中一个去世了，另一个在随后的几年内很可能生病或是离世;二、一人在照顾其换有精神错乱疾病的配偶时可能后来也患有相同的疾病。这两个发现显然都是夫妻生活的负面影响，因此选择A项。

　　65.

　　选择A项。

　　由问题中的关键词social networks找到出题源——文章第二段最后一句。由all kinds of social networks have similar effects可推断选择A项。很显然这里的similar effects指的是marriage’s effects。文章的第三段提到了社交网络对一个人的种种益处，但并未谈及B、C、D三项所陈述的内容。

　　66.

　　选择B项。

　　题目问的是“由最后一段能推断出什么?”最后一段主要讲的是“要想寿命长就要建立社交网络”。有意思的是Christakis的这句话"People are interconnected, so their health is interconnected."(人类是相互联系的群体，他们的健康也是如此)