Of all the components of a good night's sleep, dreams seem to be least within our control. In dreams, a window opens into a world where logic is suspended and dead people speak. A century ago, Freud formulated his revolutionary theory that dreams were the disguised shadows of our unconscious desires and fears; by the late 1970s, neurologists had switched to thinking of them as just 'mental noise'—the random byproducts of the neural-repair work that goes on during sleep. Now researchers suspect that dreams are part of the mind's emotional thermostat, regulating moods while the brain is 'off-line.' And one leading authority says that these intensely powerful mental events can be not only harnessed but actually brought under conscious control, to help us sleep and feel better. 'It's your dream,' says Rosalind Cartwright, chair of psychology at Chicago's Medical Center, 'If you don't like it, change it.'
    The link between dreams and emotions shows up among the patients in Cartwright's clinic. Most people seem to have more bad dreams early in the night, progressing toward happier ones before awakening, suggesting that they are working through negative feelings generated during the day. Because our conscious mind is occupied with daily life we don't always think about the emotional significance of the day's events—until, it appears, we begin to dream.
    And this process need not be left to the unconscious. Cartwright believes one can exercise conscious control over recurring bad dreams. As soon as you awaken, identify what is upsetting about the dream. Visualize how you would like it to end instead; the next time it occurs, try to wake up just enough to control its course. With much practice people can learn to, literally, do it in their sleep.
    At the end of the day, there's probably little reason to pay attention to our dreams at all unless they keep us from sleeping or 'we wake up in panic,' Cartwright says. Terrorism, economic uncertainties and general feelings of insecurity have increased people's anxiety. Those suffering from persistent nightmares should seek help from a therapist. For the rest of us, the brain has its ways of working through bad feelings. Sleep—or rather dream—on it and you'll feel better in the morning.
单选题     By saying that 'dreams are part of the mind's emotional thermostat'（Para. 1), the researchers mean that ______.
 
【正确答案】 D
【答案解析】 根据第一段第四句话, Now researchers suspect that dreams are part of the mind's emotional thermostat, regulating moods while the brain is 'off-line.' 现在研究人员怀疑梦是人类的情感恒温器，能够在大脑掉线时调节情绪。故答案是D。
单选题     What did Cartwright find in her clinic? ______
 
【正确答案】 C
【答案解析】 根据第二段第一句，“The link between dreams and emotions shows up among the patients in Cartwright's clinic.” Cartwright的诊所的病人显示梦与情感之间是有联系的。故答案为C。
单选题     Cartwright believed with much practice, we can learn to ______.
 
【正确答案】 C
【答案解析】 根据第三段倒数第二句话，“Visualize how you would like it to end instead; the next time it occurs, try to wake up just enough to control its course.”想象一下你想让梦以什么的方式结束，下次你就可以醒来，及时地控制梦的过程。故答案是C，醒来以停止做噩梦。
单选题     The author points out that a person who has constant bad dreams should ______.
 
【正确答案】 B
【答案解析】 根据第四段第三句话“Those suffering from persistent nightmares should seek help from a therapist.”那些经常做噩梦的人应该寻求治疗。故答案是B。
单选题     The author most probably thinks that controlling dreams is ______.
 
【正确答案】 D
【答案解析】 根据最后一段倒数第二句话“For the rest of us, the brain has its ways of working through bad feelings.”对于我们这些人来说，我们的大脑能够自己处理坏的情绪。故答案是D，控制梦并不是每个人都需要做的事情。