Question

【题目】请认真阅读下列短文，并根据所读内容在文章后表格中的空格里填入一个最恰当的单词。注意：请将答案谢在答题纸上相应题号的横线上，每个空格只填一个单词。

Hearing loss, that’s an older person’s problem, right? Think again. Noise, not age, is the leading cause of hearing loss. While hearing problems are common among older folks, damage from everyday noise is growing among younger Americans, including those in their teens and 20s.

The latest research from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDCP) shows some 40 million Americans ages 20 to 69 suffering hearing damage from everyday loud noise, including heavy traffic, noisy restaurants, rock concerts, sporting events and loud music via earbuds(耳塞). Among 12- to 19-year-olds, researchers estimate some 17 percent show evidence of noise-induced hearing loss in one or

both ears. Worse, many Americans don’t even realize their hearing has been affected.

In the CDCP’s analysis of more than 3,500 hearing tests, one out of four adults claimed their hearing was just fine and reported no job-related noise, yet hearing tests indicated they already had noise-induced hearing loss. This type of damage causes a alarming drop in the ability to hear high-pitched sounds, and it was evident in those as young as 20.

“We have government standards in the workplace to protect workers from noise, but nothing protects you from a society getting noisier every year,” says audiologist Jack Scott, of the Center for Audiology, Speech, Language, and Learning at Northwestern University. Even in protected parks and wildlife areas, a recent study found that noise pollution from traffic, logging and drilling has doubled, drowning out the natural sounds of birds and rushing water.

Sarah Sydlowski, the audiology director of the hearing implant program at the Cleveland Clinic, puts the problem this way: “The baby boomer generation is dealing with skin cancer from the tanning they did as teens. This generation will have to deal with the consequences of noise exposure that damaged their hearing.” Many young adults don’t realize that hearing loss is permanent. When loud noise kills the sensitive inner-ear cells that allow us to hear, they don’t regenerate. “The hearing you have when you’re

born is all you get. Those cells can’t be replaced,” says Sydlowski says. “And the damage is cumulative（累

积的）,” adds Scott. The more often the ears are exposed to damaging noise, the more cells die, leading to damaged hearing day by day.

Part of the reason hearing damage is showing up earlier is today’s improved portable devices. The sound level 28 years ago from the Walkman, with its weak headphones, was much lower than today’s high-fidelity smartphones with earbuds that deliver louder sound much closer to the eardrum. A study that compared hearing tests of teens found the levels of mild hearing loss jumped 30 percent. But don’t just blame the earbuds, says Sydlowski. People underestimate what a safe level of sound is, “especially when they’re already in a noisy environment.” Both she and Scott say a common problem among their younger patients is turning up the sound in their earbuds to mask the noise around them.

To protect your hearing, follow these tips:

Turn down the volume. If you’re listening to music through your earbuds, “any volume level higher than 50 percent is risky,” says Sydlowki.

Limit your exposure. Do not attend fitness classes with deafening music (or at least move away from the speakers, advises Sydlowski) and sports stadiums with ear-splitting crowd noise.

【1】_________________

【2】_________________

【3】_________________

【4】_________________

【5】_________________

【6】_________________

【7】_________________

【8】_________________

【9】_________________

【10】_________________

Answer 1

【答案】

【1】situation

【2】contributes/leads

【3】trend

【4】unaware/unconscious

【5】protected/protection

【6】heard

【7】llowing/enabling

【8】responsible

【9】causing

【10】Avoiding

【解析】

本文是最新研究结果。噪音，而不是年龄，是听力损失的主要原因。虽然听力问题在老年人中很常见，但在年轻的美国人中，日常噪音的损害正在增加，包括那些十几岁和二十几岁的人。文章分析了听力受损的原因以及保护听力的方法。

【1】概括总结。根据第一段进行概括当前形势，故答案为situation。

【2】细节定位。根据第一段第二句leading cause of转化得出，故答案为contributes/leads。

【3】概括总结。根据第一段最后一句is growing和problems are common可知答案为trend。

【4】细节定位。根据第二段最后一句don’t even realize---，可以推断出，动词和形容词短语的转化。故答案为unaware/unconscious。

【5】细节定位。第四段第一句nothing protects---转化得出。故答案为protected/protection。

【6】细节定位。第四段最后一句drowning out the natural sounds---，故答案为heard。

【7】细节定位。根据第五段倒数第四句that allow us to hear---，可知答案为llowing/enabling。

【8】概括总结。第六段前两句可得知因果关系，故答案为responsible。

【9】概括总结。根据第六段第3、4、5句句意得知前面的现象造成后面的危害，同时考查非谓语语法和搭配。故答案为causing。

【10】细节定位。根据最后一段Do not attend---，可以推出答案为Avoiding。