睡眠的谜团有待破解

钟翠频 黄连英

Sleep is an ancient， universal experience. Animals do it. People do it， though often less than they would like to.

But because it is so commonplace， for a long time sleep was a subject that scientists had not realized. It is only about in the past half-century that it has attracted the attention of researchers. A new book from Kenneth Miller， a science journalist， sets out to chronicle the field’s short but fascinating history.

The book is organized around the life and hard work of four scientists. The patriarch of the field is Nathaniel Kleitman， who set up a pioneering sleep-research programme at the University of Chicago.

In this book， the author spent a good deal of time on biographical details and pen portraits of the world through which Kleitman moved. But the story soon picks up. It roams from the discovery of rapid-eye-movement （REM） sleep and circadian rhythms — the biological clocks that govern humanity’s days — to the effects of sleep deprivation. It also probes the purpose， if any， of dreams.

Underlying it all is a sense of psychology’s slow maturing as a science. New technologies such as electroencephalographs， which monitor electrical activity in the brain， have offered practitioners the ability to study brains directly， rather than trying to infer what they are doing from the behaviour of their owners.

Discoveries often lead to new questions in turn. That is why neat， tidy endings are hard to achieve in science books; this one is no different. Despite all the progress of the past 50 years， scientists are still unsure what sleep is for. The fact it is so widespread suggests it is vital. But why evolution would see fit to produce animals that must spend large amounts of their time insensate and unable to respond to threats is still a mystery researchers are trying to solve. For anyone curious about asking the right questions， however， Mr Miller’s book is a good place to start.

（材料來自The Economist杂志，有删改）

1. What does the underlined word “chronicle” in Paragraph 2 probably mean？

A. Adapt. B. Change.

C. Record.   D. Create.

2. What is mainly talked about in Paragraph 3 and Paragraph 4？

A. The main content of the book.

B. The influence of four scientists.

C. The places Kleitman has visited.

D. The effects of sleep deprivation.

3. Why are good endings hard to achieve in science books？

A. The scientists are still uncertain what sleep is for.

B. New questions often arise from discoveries.

C. New discoveries often need too much fund.

D. The scientists are not unsure of the methods.

4. What is the author’s attitude toward Mr Miller’s book？

A. Doubtful. B. Objective.

C. Negative. D. Positive.

1. C。解析：词义猜测题。材料第二段的第一句和第二句提到“由于睡眠如此普遍，很长一段时间内，科学家们并未对睡眠这个课题产生兴趣，直到最近半个多世纪，它才引起了研究者的注意”，由此可以推出画线词所在句子是说“科普记者Kenneth Miller的这本新书记录了睡眠领域短暂但迷人的历史”。因此，“chronicle”应有“记录”之意。故选C。

2. A。解析：推理判断题。材料第三段主要讲述了这本书是围绕4位科学家的生活和工作展开的；材料第四段先是讲这本书描述了传记细节和Kleitman所到达的地方，接着回归主题——睡眠和做梦。综合起来看，这两段讲述的是这本书的主要内容。故选A。

3. B。解析：细节理解题。根据材料最后一段的第一句和第二句（Discoveries often lead to new questions in turn. That is why neat， tidy endings are hard to achieve in science books...），我们可知科普书籍很难有完美的结尾是因为新发现往往又会引出新的问题。故选B。

4. D。解析：观点态度题。材料最后一段的最后一句指出“对于任何想提出正确问题的人来说，Miller的书是一个很好的起点”，由此可见，作者对他的书持肯定态度。故选D。