单选题 More people are now going to dentists' offices, but nearly one half of the United States population will not see a dentist. Why? They are scared. And, really, what experience is worse than seeing a traditional dentist? You wait in silence, thumbing through old magazines, in a germ-free white waiting room in which no one ever speaks. All is silent until an assistant calls your name and leads you back to another white room, which is filled with machinery to frighten you still further.
At the Medical College of Georgia, dentists are taught principles of behavior and techniques of office design that should help reduce the patients' anxiety and tension. Assistants and receptionists are taught to smile and speak to the patient. This helps create an environment of trust. Dentists themselves are being taught to communicate more fully with the patient. A phrase such as" you are doing fine" tells the patient that the dentist is appreciative of the patient's unpleasant situation.
Dentists' office is being repainted in colors that make patients feel calmer. A startling color such as red should be avoided at all costs, for red brings to mind blood and pain. Paintings and other things are strategically located so as to turn away the patient's attention. Until recently, dentists had ignored the fact that most patients never see much more than the ceiling of the practice room. Most of the time, patients are lying flat on their backs with little time to busy their minds other than their pains. Now dentists are not only building ceiling with fancy patterns, but also turning away patients' attention with ceiling TV set, computer games and mobile sculptures.
In addition, the practice room is redecorated to include less of white. Uniforms are also being made in soft and earth colors, no longer in white. Some dentists take an active role in teaching their patients deep muscle relaxation and breathing control. Some use advanced techniques, such as bio-feedback to help their patients relax in the chair. Drugs and painkillers may still be used to ease physical pain, but all these techniques of relaxation help the patients relax and avoid anxiety over their pain.

单选题 Dentists offices are______.
A. pleasant places in one's memory
B. avoided red color because it is connected with blood and pain
C. decorated very well to attract more patients
D. required to paint white

【正确答案】 B

【答案解析】第三段第二句提到红色会使人联想到血和疼痛，因此要尽全力避免使用这种令人恐惧的颜色，因此选[B]。[A]与第一段内容不符，很多美国人认为看牙医是很恐怖的记忆；牙科诊所装修的很漂亮的主要目的不是为了吸引更多病人，而是减轻病人的恐惧心理，因此排除[C]；传统的牙科诊所通常粉刷成白色，但不一定是上面要求这么做的，因此排除[D]。

单选题 We can conclude from the passage that______.
A. anxiety and tension are the main cause of pain
B. relaxation helps a patient don't feel pain at all
C. being anxious heightens the pain a patient feels
D. patients only seeing the ceiling won't feel painful

【正确答案】 C

【答案解析】由文章的第三段的第二句和最后一段结尾部分可知，病人在手术中感到的疼是肉体的疼痛，而紧张的心理又会加剧疼痛，因此牙医从病人的心理方面人手设法减轻他们的痛苦，因此选[C]。病人感到疼痛主要是手术引起的肉体的疼痛，紧张会使之加剧，而非完全由紧张焦虑引起的，故排除[A]；放松只能缓解疼痛，却不能消除疼痛，故排除[B]；[D]是过去传统的做法，使病人感到紧张、疼痛。

单选题 The passage suggests that______.
A. patients lie flat to think other things in stead of their pains
B. warm colors help ease physical pain
C. dentists can do nothing to ease the patients' pain
D. some of the pain patients feel may be psychological

【正确答案】 D

【答案解析】在进行牙科手术时，病人在手术中感到的疼是肉体的疼痛，而紧张的心理又会加剧疼痛，牙医从病人的心理方面人手，通过改变环境的布局和色彩等措施设法转移病人的注意力，防止病人由于精神紧张而加剧疼痛，因此选[D]。[A]与第三段倒数第二句不一致，病人平躺着，除了疼痛不会想别的事情，故排除；温暖的颜色只能减轻因精神紧张而造成的疼痛，却不能消除肉体的疼痛，故排除[B]；牙医可以从病人的心理人手，消除他们的紧张感，从而缓解他们的疼痛，并不是面对病人的痛苦，无能为力，因此排除[C]。

单选题 Dentists should______.
A. try to communicate with their patients
B. use advanced techniques, such as bio-feedback on most patients
C. comfort their patients constantly
D. use some non-medical means to relieve patients' pain

【正确答案】 D

【答案解析】从最后一段最后一句可知，牙医除了用药物止痛以外，还可以采用一些非医疗的措施来缓解和分散病人因精神紧张而导致的疼痛。non-medical means是原文techniques of relaxation的同义转述，因此选[D]。[A]、[B]和[C]的内容都不全面，故排除。

单选题 The main idea of the passage is______.
A. physical surroundings have effects on people's emotional reactions
B. most people are sensitive to physical pain
C. many people cannot see dentists because dentists are not enough in the U. S.
D. decoration plays a primary role in relieving patients' fears

【正确答案】 A

【答案解析】本题考查文章主旨。文章讲述厂牙科诊所通过对手术室的布置，医生着装的变化等一些非医疗手段来减轻病人看牙医的恐惧心理，诊室的色彩、布局和医生的着装等环境因素都会影响病人的心理，因此选[A]物理环境会对病人的心理反应产生影响。[B]大部分人对生理疼痛都很敏感，原文未提及；[C]许多人不去看牙医，不是由于美国牙医数量不足，而是他们害怕看牙时的痛苦；[D]在消除病人的恐惧方面装饰起着主要作用，夸大了装饰的作用，装饰只是起辅助性的作用，故排除。