单选题 It began as just another research project, in this case to examine the effects of various drugs on patients with a severe mood disorder. Using an advanced brain scanning technology--the clumsily named echo-planar magnetic resonance spectroscopic imaging (磁共振光谱成像 ) procedure, or EP-MRSI--researchers at Boston's McLean Hospital scanned the medicated and un-medicated brains of 30 people with bipolar disorder in order to detect possible new treatments for the more than 2 million American adults who suffer from the disease.
But something unexpected happened. A patient who had been so depressed that she could barely speak became {{U}}ebullient{{/U}} after the 45-minute brain scan. Then a second patient, who seemed incapable of even a smile, emerged actually telling jokes. Then another and another. Was this some coincidence? Aimee Parow, the technician who made these observations didn't think so. She mentioned the patients' striking mood shifts to her boss, and together they completely refocused the study: to see if the electromagnetic fields might actually have a curative effect on depressive mood.
As it turns out, they did. As reported last month in the American Journal of Psychiatry, 23 of the 30 people who were part of the study reported feeling significantly less depressed after the scan. The most dramatic improvements were among those who were taking no medication. The researchers are cautious. Says Bruce Cohen, McLean's president and psychiatrist in chief: "I want to emphasize that we are not saying this is the answer but this is a completely different approach in trying to help the brain than anything that was done before."
It's a completely different approach because of the way the magnetism is applied to the brain. But it's an example of new research on an old idea: that the brain is an electromagnetic organ and that brain disorders might result from disorder in magnetic function. The idea has huge appeal to psychiatrists and patients alike, since for many people the side effects of psychiatric (精神的 ) drugs are almost as difficult to manage as the disease itself. And 30 percent of the nearly 18.8 million people who suffer from depression do not respond to any of the antidepressants available now. People with other severe mental disorders might benefit as well. And while no one fully understands exactly why or how the brain responds as it does to electrical currents and magnetic waves, fascinating new research is offering some possible explanations.
单选题 The first paragraph describes a project aimed at finding
  • A. who has bipolar disorder
  • B. what improves people's moods
  • C. whether magnetic scanning is a treatment
  • D. how some patients respond to some drugs
【正确答案】 D
【答案解析】
单选题 What does the passage say about bipolar disorder?
  • A. It mainly affects males.
  • B. It may cause drug addiction.
  • C. It is a mental problem.
  • D. It is hard to detect.
【正确答案】 C
【答案解析】第一段最后一句提到了“bipolar disorder”，说研究人员对具有双相型心理障碍的人进行大脑磁共振光谱成像，以便找到这一疾病的新的治疗方法。结合第一段第一句提到了研究对象是严重情绪失常病人，可以看出“bipolar disorder”指的就是严重情绪失常，属于一种心理疾病。
单选题 The word "ebullient" in Paragraph 2 can be best replaced by______.
  • A. "considerate"
  • B. "quiet"
  • C. "excited"
  • D. "sorrowful"
【正确答案】 C
【答案解析】第二段第二句说：一位严重抑郁几乎不能说话的病人在45分钟的大脑扫描之后变得兴高采烈。第三句说：第二位病人看起来已经不会笑了，经过大脑扫描之后居然讲起了笑话。综合这两句可以看出大脑扫描之后发生了明显的变化，病人从不开心变得开心，所以可以猜出“ebullient”应该是“depressed”的反义词，它的意思是“cheerful and full of energy，”兴高采烈的。
单选题 The researchers' attitude toward the new finding can be described as______.
  • A. confused
  • B. amused
  • C. careful
  • D. skeptical
【正确答案】 C
【答案解析】
单选题 The new finding is significant because it shows that electromagnetic fields may______.
  • A. treat mental disorders
  • B. cause mental disorders
  • C. increase the effectiveness of some drugs
  • D. reduce the effectiveness of some drugs
【正确答案】 A
【答案解析】
单选题 The passage mainly______.
  • A. reports a discovery
  • B. challenges a discovery
  • C. explains the problems with a discovery
  • D. describes the background of a discovery
【正确答案】 A
【答案解析】