Until about 18 years ago, it was widely assumed that most of brain development occurs in the first few years of life. But recent research on the human brain has shown that many brain regions undergo prolonged development throughout adolescence and beyond in humans. This advancement in knowledge has increased old worries and given rise to new ones. It is hugely worrying that so many teenagers around the world don’t have access to education at a time when their brains are still developing and being shaped by the environment. We should also worry about our lack of understanding of how our rapidly changing world is shaping the developing teenage brain.

Decades of research on early neurodevelopment suggested that the environment influences brain development. During the first few months or years of life, an animal must be exposed to particular visual or auditory stimuli (听觉刺激) for the associated brain cells and connections to develop. In this way, neuronal circuitry (神经元回路) is shaped according to the environment during ‘sensitive periods’ of brain development. This research has focused mostly on early development of sensory brain regions. What about later development of higher-level brain regions, which are involved in decision-making, control and planning, as well as social understanding and self-awareness? We know these brain regions continue to develop throughout adolescence. However, we have very little knowledge about how environmental factors influence the developing teenage brain. This is something that should concern us.

There’s a lot of concern about the hours some teenagers spend online and playing video games. But maybe all this worry is misplaced. After all, throughout history humans have worried about the effects of new technologies on the minds of the next generation. When the printing press was invented, there was anxiety about reading corrupting young people’s minds, and the same worries were repeated for the invention of radio and television. Maybe we shouldn’t be worried at all. It’s possible that the developing brains of today’s teenagers are going to be the most adaptable, creative, multi-tasking brains that have ever existed. There is evidence—from adults—that playing video games improves a range of cognitive functions such as divided attention and working memory. Much less is known about how gaming, social networking and so on, influence the developing adolescent brain. We don’t know whether the effects of new technologies on the developing brain are positive, negative or neutral. We need to find out.

Adolescence is a period of life in which the brain is developing and shapable, and it represents a good opportunity for learning and social development. However, according to UNICEF, 40% of the world’s teenagers do not have access to secondary school education. The percentage of teenage girls who have no access to education is much higher, and yet there is strong evidence that the education of girls in developing countries has multiple significant benefits for family health, population growth rates, child mortality rates, HIV rates as well as for women’s self-esteem and quality of life. Adolescence represents a time of brain development when teaching and training should be particularly beneficial. I worry about the lost opportunity of denying the world’s teenagers access to education.

81. 请阅读下面短文，并按照要求用英语写一篇150词左右的文章。

On Nov. 25, 2016, Luo Er in the city of Shenzhen published an article about his 5-year-old daughter’s leukemia(白血病)to raise money for her treatment via WeChat, China’ most popular messaging app. According to the WeChat account, Luo raised more than 2 million yuan.

However, he was flooded with considerable criticism. On one hand, he was revealed as the owner of three apartments. On the other hand, the Shenzhen hospital treating Luo’s daughter confirmed that the five-year-old leukemia patient was receiving the highest level of medical care, but said the cost of the treatment totaled 200,000 yuan, with more than 82% of those expenses covered by government health insurance. That meant Luo raised 75 times his spending on his daughter’s treatment via WeChat. On Nov. 30, Shenzhen’s civil affairs authority said it had launched an investigation into the case.

Some Internet users said they thought the campaign may be a marketing exercise or even a downright fraud. “If it were me, I would never use this incident to push my kid in front of the public,” one Internet user wrote on China’s Weibo site. Another said, “I feel that we are cheated and I’ll save my kindness for others who truly need it and don’t write articles for marketing.”

【写作内容】

1. 用约30个单词写出上文概要;

2.用约120个单词发表你的观点，内容包括：

(1)你对这一事件的看法;

(2)从“公平、诚信”等方面谈一谈你得到的启示。

【写作要求】

1.阐述观点或论据时，不能直接引用原文语句;

2.作文中不能出现真实姓名和学校名称;

3.不必写标题。

【评分标准】

内容完整，语言规范，语篇连贯，词数适当。

历年英语高考真题解析

答案

1. B 2. A 3. B 4. A 5. C 6. A 7. B 8. C 9. A 10. A

11. B 12. A 13. A 14. C 15. B 16. C 17. B 18. C 19. A 20. C

21. C 22. A 23. B 24. D 25. C 26. B 27. C 28. D 29. A 30. D

31. B 32. D 33. C 34. B 35. A

36. C 37. B 38. D 39. A 40. D 41. A 42. C 43. D 44. B 45. B

46. C 47. D 48. C 49. A 50. B 51. D 52. B 53. A 54. C 55. A

56. B 57. D 58. A59. C60. B 61. A 62. C 63. B64. D 65. B

66.C67.B68. C69. D70. A

71. continue 72. causes 73. affecting/influencing 74. shape

75. concerned/worried/anxious 76. corrupted 77. development

78. importance/significance/benefit 79. accessible/available

80. aware/conscious

81. One possible version:

A father, who posted his daughter’s illness via WeChatto raise money for her treatment, was criticized by the public because he had the ability to cover the medical expenses.

I’m in complete disagreement with the behavior of the father. It’s apparent that raising money on the Internet is an effective way to help those in need, which can not only assist them in getting through the hardships but also be helpful in creating a harmonious society. However, this fathercan afford the medical expenses but turned to others for help, which betrayed the public’s trust and made them feel cheated.

As far as I’m concerned, only when one is in desperateneed can they seek for help from others. Meanwhile, the government and relevant authorities should make effortsto enhance the supervision of the identity of those seeking help and get to the truth of their problems.

录音稿

第一节

(Text 1)