题型：任务型阅读 题类：常考题 难易度：困难
江苏省镇江市2016-2017学年高二下学期英语期末考试试卷
The steady increase in women having babies later in life is undeniable. First-time mothers are more likely to be 35 or older than their counterparts (对应者) from two decades ago, according to the Pew Research Center. While the number of first-time moms between ages 20 and 24 falls, the number of births to women in their 30s and 40s keeps growing. In addition, recent wide-ranging studies have found significant long-term benefits in waiting to have babies. These benefits counterbalance (抵消) some worries about being an older mother and the effects it may have on children.
Longevity for women who wait
A study in the journal Menopause examined older mothers' life expectancy (寿命) and found that women who had their last child after the age of 33 are more likely to live to 95. In fact, researchers reported that these women had twice the chance of living to 95 or older than those who had their last child before their 30th birthday. The news for women having babies after 40 is equally promising.
Boosted brainpower for older mothers
It's also possible that later pregnancies (怀孕) protect against cognitive decline. Researchers at the University of Southern California found that women have better brainpower if they have their last baby after age 35. The researchers looked at the pregnancy history of a group of 830 women ages 41 to 92. Their research provides strong evidence of a positive association between later age at last pregnancy and late-life cognition.
Increased income over time
There's a measurable link between the age you have your first child and income gains and losses. Women who start their families when they are older are likely to increase their earning potential.
Educational and emotional support for children
Older parents who are less stressed about income or job security tend to be more patient and can spend more time with their children. Parents who have more secondary education can also offer more specific stimulation to their children, which can be helpful for development. An investigation of 8- to 12-year-olds explored how specific parenting beliefs and behaviors—such as reading, constructive play and emotional support—affected child development. The research published in the Journal of Family Psychology found that parent education and income positively affect child achievement.
Having babies later in life
Common phenomenon | It can't bethat the number of women having babies later in life is steadily . | |
Long-term in waiting to have babies | Longevity for women who wait | • with those who had their last child before 30, women givingto last child after 33 or even 40 are more likely to live to 95 or older. |
Boosted brainpower for older mothers | • Later pregnancies prevent late-life cognition from . • Research on 830 women proves that there is a association between later age at last pregnancy and late-life cognition. | |
Increased income over time | Older mothers have the potential of increasing their income in the future. | |
Educational and support for children | • more patience and more time, older parents with higher income and education can also offer specific stimulation to children. • Specific parenting beliefs and behaviors have influence on child | |
注意：每个空格只填1个单词。
We all need to feel understood, recognized and affirmed by our friends, family and romantic partners. We all need to find our tribe.
Research has shown that among the benefits that come with being in a relationship or group, feeling accepted is regarded as the most important driver of meaning. When other people think you matter and treat you as if you matter, you believe you matter, too.
Though we all share a need to belong, in the first decades of the 20th century, many influential psychologists and physicians did not acknowledge this fundamental aspect of human nature. The idea that children needed parental love and care to live a full and meaningful life was not only considered medically dangerous, but also dismissed as immoral and disgusting.
As behavioral psychology came into fashion and academic psychologists turned their attention to child- raising, this view shifted and they began to examine and affirm the vital importance of attachment in early life. They discovered that people, whatever their age, needed more than food and shelter to live full and healthy lives.
But, sadly, many of us lack close ties. At a time when we are more connected digitally than ever before, rates of social isolation are rising. The results of an Age UK poll published recently suggest that half a million people over the age of 60 usually spend each day alone, and it's not unusual for another half a million people to go without someone to speak to for five or six days. All these figures reveal more than a rise in loneliness — they reveal a lack of meaning in people's lives. In surveys, we list our close relationships as our most important sources of meaning. Research shows that people who are lonely and isolated feel their lives are less meaningful.
While close relationships are critical for living a meaningful life, they are not the only important social bonds we need to cultivate. Psychologists have also discovered the value of small moments of intimacy. “High-quality connections”, as one researcher calls them, are positive, short-term interactions between two people when a couple holds hands on a walk or when two strangers have an empathetic(移情作用的) conversation on a plane. High-quality connections have the potential to unlock meaning in our interactions with acquaintances, colleagues and strangers. We can't control whether someone will make a high-quality connection with us, but we can all choose to start one. We can say hello to a stranger on the street rather than look away. We can choose to value people rather than devalue them. We can invite people to belong.
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The need to belong |
*Everyone hopes to develop a {#blank#}1{#/blank#} of belonging in a group. *People's self-respect is {#blank#}2{#/blank#} by other people's opinion. |
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The changing {#blank#}3{#/blank#} to belonging |
*Many famous experts in the first decades of the 20th century {#blank#}4{#/blank#} that people had the need to belong. *Experts later came to realize that people, {#blank#}5{#/blank#} of their age, needed attachment to enjoy full and healthy lives. |
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Consequences of {#blank#}6{#/blank#} close ties |
*Many people are cut off from the world and feel {#blank#}7{#/blank#}. *People who do not have enough close relationships find their lives are less {#blank#}8{#/blank#}. |
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Another way to meet the need |
*High-quality connections make a {#blank#}9{#/blank#} in helping satisfy our need to belong. *We should {#blank#}10{#/blank#} to make a high-quality connection. |
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