There is some unwelcome news for students preparing for exams and officers putting in long hours-you don't need that“refreshment break (恢复性休息)”as much as you may think.
Scientists have long assumed that willpower is a limited resource, which is why you feel the urge to have a rest, have a snack and come back to a task when you are feeling better. They argued that the only way to restore willpower is by recharging our bodies with rest, food or entertainment.
But psychologists have challenged this theory, saying weak willpower is all in your head. They found that a person's mindset (心态) and personal beliefs about willpower determine how long and how well they'll be able to work on a tough mental exercise.“ If you think of willpower as something that's limited, you're more likely to be tired when you perform a difficult task ,”said Professor Veronika Job. “But if you think of willpower as something that is not easily depleted, you can go on and on.”
The researchers designed a series of four experiments to test the students' beliefs about willpower. After a tiring task, those who believed or were led to believe that willpower is a limited resource performed worse on standard concentration tests than those who thought of willpower as something they had more control over. They also found that leading up to final exam week，students who believed the limited resource theory ate junk food 24 percent more often than those who believed they had more control in resisting temptations (诱惑).
Mr. Job said,“ Students who may already have trouble studying are being told that their powers of concentration are limited, and they need to take frequent breaks. But a belief in willpower as a non-limited resource makes people stronger in their ability to work through challenges.”
The findings could help people who are battling with distractions or temptations: people trying to overcome addictions， and employees facing a tight deadline, etc. Willpower isn't driven by a biologically based process as much as we used to think. The belief in it is what influences your behavior.
28. What should we do if we meet challenges in life according to the text?
A. Leave them alone.
B. Believe in our willpower.
C. Recharge our bodies with rest.
D. Tolerate them until we feel better.
29. The underlined word “depleted” in Paragraph 3 probably means“          ”.
A. used up       B. set aside       C. absorbed in       D. taken in
30. The text is mainly intended to
A. persuade us to ignore willpower
B. show us how to build strong willpower
C. convince us of the importance of willpower
D. encourage the students to face challenges calmly
31. What can we conclude from the text?
A. Willpower won't affect our life and work.
B. People do need a break to restore the willpower.
C. There's no way to change people's willpower.
D. Willpower is an unlimited resource.
C
【语篇导读】人的意志力取决于心态。意志力有限就难以成事，反之则能成功。
28. B细节理解题。根据第三段中可知，面对挑战时，我们应该相信自己无穷的意志力，才能把事情做好。故选B。
29. A 词义猜测题。根据上文的“If you think of willpower as something that's limited...”可推测出，此处意思为“用光，耗尽”。故选A。
30. C写作意图题。根据文章，作者是要让我们相信意志力的重要性。故选C。
31. D主旨大意题。根据全文可知，长久以来，科学家们一直认为人们需要必要的休息才能恢复意志力，但现在心理学家有了不同的观点，并用了大量的篇幅来描述人的意志力是无穷的。 故选D。