2014年四級英語考試閱讀題：

　　Questions 56 to 60 are based on thefollowing passage.

　　Scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in the US found higher levels of protein S1PR2(磷酸鞘氨醇受體蛋白)in tests on the brains of female mice and dead women with MS than in male equivalents.Four times more women than men are currently diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis(多發(fā)性硬化癥).

　　Experts said the finding was”really interesting”.MS affects the nerves in the brain and spinal cord，which causes problems with muscle movement，balance and vision.It is a major cause of disability,and affects about 1 00，000 people in the UK.Abnormal immune cells aRack nerve cells in the central Nervous system in MS patients.There is currently no cure，A.though there are treatments that can help in the early stages of the disease.

　　Researchers in Missouri looked at relapsing remitting(復(fù)發(fā)緩解型)MS，where people have distinct attacks of symptoms that tllen fade away either partially or completely.About 85%of all people with MS have this type.Scientists studied the blood vessels and brains of healthy mice，mice with MS，and mice without the gene for SlPR2，a blood vessel receptor protein，to see how it affected MS severity.They A.so 100ked at the brain tissue samples of 20 people after they had died.They found high levels of S1PR2 in the areas of the brain typically damaged by 　　MS in both mice and people.Tlle activity of the gene coding for S1 PR2 was positively correlated with the severity of the disease in mice.the study said.

　　Scientists said S l PR2 could work by helping to make the blood-brain barrier,in charge of stopping potentiA.ly harmful substances from entering the brain and spial fluid.more permeable.A more permeable barrier could let attacking cells，which cause MS，into the central nervous system，the study said.This link[between MS and S lPR2] is completely new一it has never been found before.

　　Dr Emma Gray,of the MS Society,said：”We don’t yet fully understand why MS affects more women than men,and it’s an area that’s intrigued scientists，and people with MS，for many years.She said understanding the causes of MS was a“priority”for the MS Society in the UK.and could be“crucial”in finding new treatments.

　　56.What can we infer from the last sentence in Para.1 ?

　　A. Wbmen are more likely to be diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis.

　　B.Men are more likely to be diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis.

　　C.Male mice are more likely to be diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis.

　　D、FemA.e mice are more likely to be diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis.

　　57.What problem does MS mainly cause?

　　A.In natured muscle movement.

　　B.Bad bA.ance.

　　C. Disability

　　D.Bad eyesight.

　　58.What is the relationship between the severity ofMS and level ofSlPR2?

　　A. A.The level of S 1 PR2 is higher,the MS is less severe.

　　B.The level of S 1PR2 is higher,the MS is more severe.

　　C. The level of S 1 PR2 is lower,the MS is less severe.

　　D、The level of S 1 PR2 is lower,the MS is more severe.

　　59.What role does SlPR2 play in helping the permeability ofblood.brain barrier?

　　A.It can make blood.brain barrier impermeable.

　　B.It can make blood—brain barrier less permeable.

　　C.It can make blood—brain barrier permeable.

　　D.It can make blood—brain barrier more permeable.

　　60.What can we infer from the whole passage?

　　A.Four times more women than men are currently diagnosed with MS.

　　B. The level of S 1 PR2 was positively correlated with the severity of MS.

　　C.The reason why MS affects more women than men is unknown.

　　D.Multiple sclerosis discovery may explain gender gap.

　　Questions 61 to 65 are based on thefollowingpassage.

　　Real.time web search—-which scours only the latest updates to services like Twitter—is currently generating quite a buzz because it can provide a glimpse of what people around the world are thinking or doing at any given moment.Interest in this kind of search is so great that，according to recent leaks，Google is considering buying Twitter.

　　The latest research from the interact search giant，though，suggests that real—time results could be even more powerful—they may reveal the future as well as the present.

　　Google researchers Hyunyoung Choi and Hal Varian combined data from Google Trends on the popularity of different search terms with models used by economists to predict trends in areas such as travel and home sales.The result?Better forecasts in A.most every case.It works because searches reveal something about people’s intentions.Google has demonstrated before that search data can predict flu outbreaks，and last week World Bank economist Erik Feyen said he could cut errors in a model that forecasts lending to the private sector by 15%using 　　Google search data.

　　But real-time results could have even more predictive power：knowing what people are actually doing，not just thinking，at a particular instant gives a strong hint of the future consequences.

　　Johan Bollen of Los A.amos NationA. Laboratory and A.berto Pepe of the University of California，Los Angeles，applied a mood rating system to the text from over 10，000 Future Me emails sent in 2006 to gauge people’s hopes，fears and predictions for the future.They found that emails directed at 2007 to 2012 were significantly more depressed in tone than messages aimed at the subsequent six years.Could they have predicted the world’s current economic slump?

　　Without more data，that is no more than an intriguing possibility.So Bollen plans to look at more Future Me emails，as well as Twitter messages，to search for mood swings that foreshadow other economic changes.If he finds any such links.the sanle sources might be used to try and predict future economic fluctuations.

　　So will our online footsteps become a central part of economic forecasting?We’11 have to wait and see——0r perhaps do a quick web search.

　　61.What is real-time web search.like Twitter?

　　A.It tells us what people did in past days.

　　B.It generates quite a buzz in recent days.

　　C.It provides latest news about everything.

　　D.It informs what people do in the future.

　　62.What is the result of research established by Google researchers Hyunyoung Choi and Hal Varian?

　　A.They gain nothing special from the combination of data and models.

　　B. 11ley indeed reveal something about people’s intentions in such areas.

　　C. They find that the future trends cannot be predicted from the research.

　　D.They totally understand the future trends of these areas from research.

　　63.What can we infer from Para.5?

　　A. It is possible for researchers to get some hints from the Future Me emails.

　　B. There is no relationship between the depression and economic slump.

　　C.There is a potential relationship between depression and economic slump.

　　D.The Future Me emails may indicate people’s reaction about future prediction.

　　64.What’s the meaning of“Without more data,that is no more than an intriguing possibility.”?

　　A. More data are necessary to turn this possibility to be reality.

　　B.The possibility is just all intriguing possibility without data.

　　C. No amount of data cannot be a strong proof for the possibility.

　　D.More data are needed to turn it out to be a pure possibility.

　　65.What’s the attitude of author to real.time search?

　　A.Negative.

　　B.Critical.

　　C.Optimistic.

　　D.Indifferent.