In August of 2001, Mitch Prinstein, a psychology professor who had just been hired at Yale University, offered his first class at the school: a course he had developed about popularity among children and adolescents. By the time the enrollment for the course was official, 550 students—a tenth of the school’s undergraduate population—had signed up to learn about that thing that is, variously, an aspiration and a scourge and a mystery: popularity. The course was popular among undergrads because they had seen popularity affecting people’s ability to find success and fulfilling friendships.
There is more than one way to be popular. Prinstein, now a professor at the University of North Carolina, breaks down his own treatment of popularity across two broad dimensions: status—the kind of popularity we tend to associate with high school, the stuff of being known and admired though not necessarily liked—and interpersonal likability. Likability is related to charm, to friendliness, to inquisitiveness—it’s the charisma that draws other people to you, largely independent of status or beauty or any of the other metrics that generally give people rank in American culture.
But then there is status: the kind of popularity that operates according to hierarchies. The kind that confers admiration but not necessarily true esteem. The kind most commonly associated with high school. Status, too, Prinstein argues, can affect people's brains and their bodies overall—in adolescence, and far beyond.
What happens in the teenage years, Prinstein suggests, is a kind of perfect storm, neurologically speaking: At the start of puberty, the brain grows more dramatically than at any other point in one’s life. Myelin, the fatty substance that coats the neurons and allows the brain to function efficiently, increases, affording a burst of neural activity. Those shifts, along with others, aid the brain’s adolescent transition from childish ways of thought (impulsive, relatively un-self-conscious) to adulthood’s more logical, ruminative, and other-oriented modes.
The result: Newfound brain capacity collides with newfound self-consciousness. The adolescent brain is primed both to take in the world around it more than ever before, and to process that information with more self-awareness than ever before. Which is another way of saying that teenagers are particularly cognizant of identity—and another way, too, of explaining why, as Jennifer Senior put it in New York Magazine, “most American high schools are almost sadistically unhealthy places to send adolescents.” It’s a powder keg, emotionally, and popularity—or, more specifically, teens conception of popularity—is a fuse.
48. What can be learned from Paragraph 1?
49. Professor Prinstein’s study of popularity shows that （ ）.
50. The bold-faced word “charisma” in Paragraph 2 means （ ）.
51. Status differs from interpersonal likability in that status （ ）.
52. Growth of the brain during adolescence makes teenagers （ ）.
53. According to the last paragraph, American high schools are unhealthy places because （ ）.
问题1选项
A.Prinstein thought about teaching popularity while he was a university student.
B.Prinstein used examples from his life to teach his popularity class.
C.Popularity carries different meanings.
D.Yale was the first university to offer a popularity class.
问题2选项
A.status and likability are two means to be popular
B.adolescents should pursue status and likability
C.status is independent of likability
D.one must be likable to be popular
问题3选项
A.appeal
B.diligence
C.peculiarity
D.generosity
问题4选项
A.draws public attention but does not win respect
B.influences one’s rank
C.is limited largely to the teenager period
D.promotes adolescents’ friendliness
问题5选项
A.more aware of who they are
B.more capable of dealing with conflicts
C.more willing to accept new knowledge
D.more likely to succeed in study
问题6选项
A.adolescents are too concerned about how good looking they are
B.adolescents are too preoccupied with what they feel they are
C.they cannot protect adolescents from dangers
D.they refuse adolescents from low-income families
第1题:C
第2题:A
第3题:A
第4题:B
第5题:A
第6题:B
第1题:
【选项释义】
What can be learned from Paragraph 1? 从第1段可以了解到什么？
A. Prinstein thought about teaching popularity while he was a university student. A. 普林斯坦在读大学时就想到了教授受欢迎课程。
B. Prinstein used examples from his life to teach his popularity class. B. 普林斯坦用他生活中的例子来教授他的受欢迎课程。
C. Popularity carries different meanings. C. 受欢迎有不同的含义。
D. Yale was the first university to offer a popularity class. D. 耶鲁大学是第一所提供受欢迎课程的大学。
【考查点】事实细节题。
【解题思路】根据题干关键词Paragraph 1可以定位到文章第一段倒数第二句“它既是一种愿望，也是一种祸害，也是一个谜（an aspiration and a scourge and a mystery）”，说明受欢迎的含义有很多种。因此C选项“受欢迎有不同的含义。”正确。
【干扰项排除】
A选项“普林斯坦在读大学时就想到了教授受欢迎课程。”，B选项“普林斯坦用他生活中的例子来教授他的受欢迎课程。”和D选项“耶鲁大学是第一所提供受欢迎课程的大学。”在文中均没有提及，属于无中生有。
第2题:
【选项释义】
Professor Prinstein’s study of popularity shows that（ ）.
普林斯坦教授对受欢迎程度的研究表明，（ ）。
A. status and likability are two means to be popular A. 地位和好感度是受欢迎的两种手段
B. adolescents should pursue status and likability B. 青少年应该追求地位和好感度
C. status is independent of likability C. 地位与好感度无关
D. one must be likable to be popular D. 一个人要想受人欢迎，必须要有好感度
【考查点】事实细节题。
【解题思路】根据题干关键词Professor Prinstein’s study of popularity可以定位到文章第二段第一句“他将自己对受欢迎程度的看法分为两个方面：地位（status），以及人际关系的好感度（interpersonal likability）”，说明普林斯坦教授的研究表明受欢迎程度包含地位和好感度两个方面。因此A选项“地位和好感度是受欢迎的两种手段”正确。
【干扰项排除】
B选项“青少年应该追求地位和好感度”，C选项“地位与好感度无关”和D选项“一个人要想受人欢迎，必须要有好感度”在文中均没有提及，属于无中生有。
第3题:
【选项释义】
The bold-faced word “charisma” in Paragraph 2 means（ ）.
第2段中的粗体字“charisma”是指（ ）。
A. appeal A. 吸引力
B. diligence B. 勤奋
C. peculiarity C. 特殊性
D. generosity D. 慷慨激昂
【考查点】词汇推断题。
【解题思路】根据题干关键词charisma可以定位到文章第二段最后一句“它是一种吸引别人的charisma”，说明受欢迎程度是一种可以吸引别人的魅力。因此A选项“吸引力”正确。
【干扰项排除】
B选项“勤奋”，C选项“特殊性”和D选项“慷慨激昂”在文中均无法体现，属于无中生有。
第4题:
【选项释义】
Status differs from interpersonal likability in that status（ ）.
地位与人际关系的好感度不同，地位（ ）。
A. draws public attention but does not win respect A. 吸引公众注意，但不赢得尊重
B. influences one’s rank B. 影响一个人的等级
C. is limited largely to the teenager period C. 主要局限于青少年时期
D. promotes adolescents’ friendliness D. 促进青少年的友好度
【考查点】事实细节题。
【解题思路】根据题干关键词Status differs from interpersonal likability可以定位到文章第二段最后一句“好感度与魅力、友好和好奇心相关联——它是一种吸引别人的魅力，很大程度上独 立于地位、美貌或其他在美国文化中通常给人排名的标准（independent of status or beauty or any of the other metrics that generally give people rank in American culture）”，说明地位与好感度的区别在于地位会给人排等级，而好感度不会。因此B选项“影响一个人的等级”正确。
【干扰项排除】
A选项“吸引公众注意，但不赢得尊重”，由Likability is related to charm, to friendliness, to inquisitiveness—it’s the charisma that draws other people to you（好感度与魅力、友好和好奇心相关联——它是一种吸引别人的魅力）可知，吸引比人注意的是好感度，而不是地位，属于张冠李戴；
C选项“主要局限于青少年时期”，由Status, too, Prinstein argues, can affect people's brains and their bodies overall—in adolescence, and far beyond.（普林斯坦认为，地位也会影响人们的大脑和身体——在青春期，甚至更远。）可知，地位不止局限于青少年时期，属于以偏概全；
D选项“促进青少年的友好度”，由Likability is related to charm, to friendliness, to inquisitiveness—it’s the charisma that draws other people to you（好感度与魅力、友好和好奇心相关联——它是一种吸引别人的魅力）可知，促进青少年友好度的是好感度，而不是地位，属于张冠李戴。
第5题:
【选项释义】
Growth of the brain during adolescence makes teenagers（ ）.
青春期大脑的成长使青少年（ ）。
A. more aware of who they are A. 更清楚自己是谁
B. more capable of dealing with conflicts B. 处理冲突的能力更强
C. more willing to accept new knowledge C. 更愿意接受新知识
D. more likely to succeed in study D. 更有可能在学习上取得成功
【考查点】事实细节题。
【解题思路】根据题干关键词Growth of the brain可以定位到文章第五段第一、二句“结果是：新发现的大脑容量与新发现的自我意识相冲突（collides with newfound self-consciousness）。青少年的大脑比以往任何时候都更容易接受周围的世界，也比以往任何时候都更有自我意识地处理这些信息（to process that information with more self-awareness than ever before）”，说明青春期大脑的成长使青少年的自我意识更强。因此A选项“更清楚自己是谁”正确。
【干扰项排除】
B选项“处理冲突的能力更强”，C选项“更愿意接受新知识”和D选项“更有可能在学习上取得成功”在文中均没有提及，属于无中生有。
第6题:
【选项释义】
According to the last paragraph, American high schools are unhealthy places because（ ）.
根据最后一段话，美国高中是不健康的地方，因为（ ）。
A. adolescents are too concerned about how good looking they are A. 青少年过于关注自己的长相是否好看
B. adolescents are too preoccupied with what they feel they are B. 青少年过于关注自己的感受如何
C. they cannot protect adolescents from dangers C. 它们不能保护青少年远离危险
D. they refuse adolescents from low-income families D. 它们拒绝来自低收入家庭的青少年
【考查点】事实细节题。
【解题思路】根据题干关键词American high schools可以定位到文章第五段第三句“这是另一种说法，说明青少年特别有身份意识（teenagers are particularly cognizant of identity），也可以解释为什么如詹妮弗•塞尼尔在《纽约杂志》中所说的‘大多数美国高中几乎是对青少年有害无益的地方’”，说明美国高中的不健康之处在于青少年的身份意识过强。因此B选项“青少年过于关注自己的感受如何”正确。
【干扰项排除】
A选项“青少年过于关注自己的长相是否好看”，C选项“它们不能保护青少年远离危险”和D选项“它们拒绝来自低收入家庭的青少年”在文中均没有提及，属于无中生有。
