A series of experiments were carried out by B. Lat...
A series of experiments were carried out by B. Latane and J. Darley. They studied the reaction of bystanders to emergency situations. Since car accidents, drownings, fires, attempted suicide, and the like arouse feelings of fear and morbid interest, these situations attract large numbers of people who stand fascinated watching the event. Yet, it is a strange aspect of crowd behavior. that often nothing is done to help the victim.
【71】Journalists writing of such events often claimed that this kind of behavior. is due to apathy, indifference, or lack of concern. To account for any bystander's decision to act or not to act, the authors of the paper ask us to consider the basic characteristics of an emergency situation.
Emergencies involve threat or harm certainly to the victim and possibly to those who try to help him (or her). The events are highly unusual, different from the normal course of life and also from each other.【72】Since little secondhand wisdom on the subject is available, it is difficult to cope with a genuine emergency by relying on such worn-out clichés as "Women and children first" or "Send for the police."
The authors tell us that it is perhaps surprising that anyone should intervene at all.【73】
Latane and Darley were interested, therefore, in trying to isolate the factors that make a person decide to act. It seemed to them that an individual is more likely to take action when he or she is alone than when part of a group. Latane and Darley theorized that when only one bystander is present, he or-she must judge the situation alone and decide whether to act or not. Only the bystander is responsible for the decision. The presence of other people, however, affects a person's assessment of the costs and rewards of intervention.【74】
The results of the experiments confirmed the theory. They showed that the immediate social environment is more important in determining a person's reaction to an emergency than are such vague cultural or personality concepts as "apathy" or "indifference." They also help to explain why the failure to intervene seems more common in large cities than in rural areas. In large cities, the members of the crowd that gathers do not take action because they do not feel individually responsible. They may be concerned, but they watch one another, uncertain of how to act, knowing that responsibility is shared. In rural areas, however, witnesses to an emergency are likely to be alone. They must take all the responsibility for their actions and are not made embarrassed or unsure by the presence of others.【75】
A. Thus, people have little experience with handling them.
B. They are, therefore, more likely to come to the aid of the victim.
C. The police asked some of the bystanders about the accident.
D. The investigators had noted this phenomenon and asked themselves why in most cases bystanders do not act.
E. This is because when there is a group, responsibility is diffused over all the members.
F. But people do sometimes intervene.
(71)
Babies who are breast-fed may be more likely to be successful in life, a new study published Tuesday suggests. The study followed more than 3,000 babies into adulthood in Brazil. The researchers found those who were breast-fed scored slightly higher in intelligence tests in their 30s, stayed in school longer and earned more money than those who were given formula(配方奶粉).
“Breast-feeding not only has short-term benefits, but also breast-feeding has long-term benefits, ” says Bernardo Lessa Horta of the Federal University of Pelotas in Brazil, who led the study being published in The Lancet Global Health.
Doctors have long known that breast-feeding can be good for a baby’s health. This is especially true in poor countries, where water can be contaminated. For instance, a baby given formula in developing countries is 14 times more likely to die in the first six months than one who’s breast-fed. In the U.S., some research has suggested that breast-feeding may raise a baby’s IQ(智商)by a few points. But a recent study with siblings(兄弟姐妹)found little advantage to breast-feeding.
Horta says these previous studies didn’t follow children into adulthood to see if breast-feeding had long-term effects. So Horta analyzed data collected from 3,493 volunteers he and his colleagues have been following since birth. They are now in their 30s. First, the researchers gave the subjects IQ tests. Those who were breast-fed for 12 months or more had IQ test scores that were 3.76 points higher than those who were breast-fed for less than one month, the team found.
When Horta and his colleagues looked at how much education the subjects had gotten and how much money they were making, they also found a clear difference: Those who were breast-fed the longest stayed in school for about an extra year and had monthly salaries that were about a third higher.
1. From the passage, we learn that Horta {A; B; C}.
A. is from Brazil
B. conducts his research in the U.S.
C. has 30 researchers on his team
2. Which of the following about those who were breast-fed is NOT mentioned?{A; B; C}
A. They stayed longer in school
B. They were happier
C. They were smarter
3. Which of the following is TRUE?{A; B; C}
A. Doctors don’t understand the benefits of breast-feeding.
B. Horta is concerned with water contamination in poor countries.
C. Horta’s research project lasted about 30 years
4. The word contaminated in Paragraph 3 is closest in meaning to {A; B; C}.
A. finished
B. interested
C. polluted
5. Which of the following is an appropriate title for this passage?{A; B; C}
A. Researchers Have Pointed Out the Disadvantages of Breast-feeding
B. Researchers Have Found Out the Shortcomings of Formula
C. Breast-feeding Improves Chances of Success