Part II Reading Comprehension (40%)

Section A

　　Directions: There are 1 passages in this part. Each passage is followed by some questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are four choices marked A, B, C and D. You should decide on the best choice and blacken the corresponding letter on the Answer Sheet with a pencil.

　　Questions 11 to 15 are based on the following passage:

　　Do you believe that only boys do well in science? Does it seem to you that girls have better vocabularies than boys? In your opinion, are boys better at building things? If your answer to each of those questions is “Yes,” you are right according to an article in “Current Science .” There are exceptions, but here are the facts.

　　On the average, males score higher on tests that measure mathematical reasoning, mechanical ability, and problem-solving skills. Females show superior ability in tests measuring vocabulary, spelling, and memory. But these difference will probably not always exist. In the future, a person’s abilities may not be determined by sex. As one scientist says, “Nothing is impossible for a person to be or do.”

　　In several recent studies, young babies have been observed and tested to discover how different abilities are developed. A scientific team headed by Jerome Kagan, a psychologist at Harvard University, is studying the thinking ability of children 111/2 months old. The test is a simple one. The baby, while seated on its mother’s lap, watches a “show” on a theater stage.

　　In act I of the show, an orange-colored block is lifted from a blue box and moved slowly across the stage. Then it is returned to the box.

　　This is repeated six times. Act 2 is similar, except that the orange block is smaller. Baby boys do not seem to notice the difference in the size of the block, but girls immediately become excited and begin to make noises that sound like language. They seem to be trying to talk.

　　It is known that bones, muscles, and nerves develop faster in baby girls. Usually, too, baby girls talk at an earlier age than boys do. Scientists think there is a physical reason for this. They believe that the nerve endings in the left side of the brain develop faster in girls than in boys. And it is this side of the brain that strongly influences an individual’s ability to use words, to spell, and to remember things.

　　By the time they start to school, therefore, little girls have an advantage that boys do not have. Girls are physically more ready to remember facts, to spell, and to read. These, of course, are skills that are important in elementary school.

　　But what have the boys been doing in the years before starting school? They have been developing something called aggression. An aggressive person has courage and energy. He feels strong and independent. He is often the first one to start a fight.

( )11. According to an article in “Current Science”, which of the following is false?

A) Boys do well in science. B) Girls have better vocabulary than boys.

C) Boys are better at building things. D) Boys are as good as girls at science

( )12. The author of the article believes _____.

A) Males, without any exception, score higher on tests that measure mathematical reasoning, mechanical ability, and problem-solving skill

B) Females show superior ability in tests measuring vocabulary, spelling, and memory

C) It the future, sex may be a key factor that determines a person’s ability

D) The differences above probably always exist

( )13. The test made by a scientific team headed by Jerome Kagan shows _____.

A) Baby boys never notice the difference in the size of the block

B) Baby boys try to talk

C) Baby girls seem to notice the difference in the size of the block

D) Baby girls know how to use language

( )14. Concerning the difference between baby boys and girls in physical development of ability scientists believe _____.

A) the nerve endings in the left side of the brain develop faster in baby boys

B) an individual’s ability to use words, to spell, and to remember things is strongly influenced by the right side of the brain

C) both baby boys and baby girls talk at an early age

D) There is a physical reason for the difference in the development of abilities of baby boys and baby girls

( )15. The author implies in the last two paragraphs that _____.

A) little girls have an advantage in elementary school

B) boys are physically more ready to remember facts, to spell, and to read

C) after starting school, boys begin to develop something called aggression

D) girls feel strong and independent