Passage 3
　　(79) There is an English saying: "Laughter is best medicine," Until recently, few people took the saying seriously. Now, however, doctors have begun to look into laughter and the effects it has on the human body. They have found that laughter really can improve people’s health.
　　Tests were carried out to study the effects of laughter on the body. People watched funny films while doctors checked their heart, blood pressure, breathing and muscles. It was found that laughter has similar effects to physical exercise. It increases blood pressure, the heart heating and breathing; it also works several groups of muscles in the face, the stomach, and even the feet. If laughter exercises the body, it must be beneficial.
　　(80) Other tests have shown that laughter appears to be able to reduce the effect of pain on the body. In one experiment doctors produced pain in groups of students who listened to different radio pro- grams. The group that tolerated the pain for the longest time was the groups which listened to a funny program. The reason why laughter can reduce pain seems to be that it helps to produce a kind of chemicals in the brain which diminish both stress and pain.
　　As a result of these discoveries, some doctors in the United States now hold laughter clinics, in which they help to improve their patients’ condition by encouraging them to laugh. They have found that even if their patients do not really feel like laughing, making them smile is enough to produce beneficial effects similar to those caused by laughter.
　　11. The passage mainly discussed that ______.
　　A laughter ard physical exercise have similar effects on the human body
　　B smile can produce the same effects as laughter
　　C pain can be reduced by laughter
　　D laughter is the best medicine
　　答案:D
　　本题考查的是考生对全文主旨的把握，文章的首句就是全文的中心思想，全篇就围绕这一主题展开。讲“笑”怎样就是一剂良药。
　　12. The students who ______ tolerated the pain for the longest time.
　　A listened to different radio programs
　　B could produce a kind of chemical
　　C don’t have stress or pain
　　D listened to a funny program
　　答案:D
　　本题考查的是考生对细节的把握，答案对应文章第三段第二行。
　　13. Doctors have proved the following EXCEPT that ______.
　　A smiling does good to health
　　B laughter can be tolerated
　　C there is a way to reduce pain
　　D laughter can work the muscles in the feet
　　本题考查的是考生对细节的把握，答案对应文章第二段，笑的作用在本段都有描述，但没有提到B项。
　　14. The word "diminish" in Line 14 means ______.
　　A test
　　B stop
　　C reduce
　　D increase
　　答案:C
　　本题考查的是考生对文中具体词义的把握，前面句中描述减轻痛苦用了reduce，这里依然表示“减轻压力和痛苦”，因此diminish应和reduce同义。
　　15. Doctors hold laughter clinics ______.
　　A to give better condition to their patients
　　B in order to improve patients’ health
　　C to make patients smile
　　D to prove smile and laughter have the same effect

学位英语:2014年学位英语考试报名考试大纲 冲刺必备试题