While still catching-up to men in some spheres of modem life, women appear to be way ahead in at least one undesirable category. "Women are particularly susceptible to developing depression and anxiety disorders in response to stress compared to men," according to Dr. Yehuda, chief psychiatrist at New York"s Veteran"s Administration Hospital.
Studies of both animals and humans have shown that sex hormones somehow affect the stress response, causing females under stress to produce more of the trigger chemicals than do males under the same conditions. In several of the studies, when stressed-out female rats had their ovaries (the female reproductive organs) removed, their chemical responses became equal to those of the males.
Adding to a woman"s increased dose of stress chemicals, are her increased "opportunities" for stress. "It"s not necessarily that women don"t cope as well. It"s just that they have so much more to cope with," says Dr. Yehuda. "Their capacity for tolerating stress may even be greater than men"s," she observes, "it"s just that they"re dealing with so many more things that they become worn out from it more visibly and sooner."
Dr. Yehuda notes another difference between the sexes. "I think that the kinds of things that women are exposed to tend to be in more of a chronic or repeated nature. Men go to war and are exposed to combat stress. Men are exposed to more acts of random physical violence. The kinds of interpersonal violence that women are exposed to tend to be in domestic situations unfortunately, parents or other family members, and they tend not to be one shot deals. The wear-and-tear that comes from these longer relationships can be quite devastating."
Adeline Alvarez married at 18 and gave birth to a son, but was determined to finish college. "I struggled a lot to get the college degree. I was living in so much frustration that that was my escape, to go to school, and get ahead and do better." Later, her marriage ended and she became a single mother, "It"s the hardest thing to take care of a teenager, have a job, pay the rent, pay the car payment, and pay the debt. I lived from paycheck to paycheck."
Not everyone experiences the kinds of severe chronic stresses Alvarez describes. But most women today are coping with a lot of obligations, with few breaks, and feeling the strain. Alvarez"s experience demonstrates the importance of finding ways to diffuse stress before it threatens your health and your ability to function.
单选题
Which of the following is true according to the first two paragraphs?
【正确答案】
A
【答案解析】本题问的是根据前两段，哪项说法是正确的。根据题干定位至原文的前两段。第一段说到，在相同的情况下，女性可能更容易在压力下产生焦虑和沮丧。第二段接着说到，“…sex hormones somehow affect the stress response, causing females tinder stress to produce more of the trigger chemicals than do males under the same conditions.”由此可知，这种不同表现来自于男女的性别差异。只有A选项“女性从生理上来说更容易产生压力”的说法符合原文内容。其他选项均不符合这两段的内容。因此，本题的正确答案为A。
单选题
Dr. Yehuda"s research suggests that women ______.
单选题
According to Paragraph 4, the stress women confront tends to be ______.
【正确答案】
C
【答案解析】本题问的是有关第四段中提到的女性面临的压力的信息。根据题干定位至原文的第四段。该段的第二句话“…the kinds of things that women are exposed to tend to be in more of a chronic or repeated nature.”指出，女性面临的压力大多数为习惯性的且时常发生。可见，C选项的durable and frequent“持久频繁的”是该句话中“chronic or repeated”的同义替换。因此，本题的正确答案为C。
单选题
The sentence "I lived from paycheck to paycheck." (Line 6, Para. 5) shows that ______.
【正确答案】
B
【答案解析】本题问的是“I lived from paycheck to paycheck.”这个句子表明了什么内容。该句话的意思为“我活在不停地支付支票的生活中”。该句话是倒数第二段的最后一句话。根据该段内容可知，Alvarez是单身母亲，她面临着很大的生存压力，需要付房租，支付用车花销，偿还贷款等。可见，只有B选项“她的薪水几乎不能满足日常的生活开销”符合原文意思。因此，本题的正确答案为B。
单选题
Which of the following would be the best title for the text?