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  3. The cause of Alzheimer’s disease is unknown, but various studies suggest that its risk factors extend beyond genetics. Some stud

The cause of Alzheimer’s disease is unknown, but various studies suggest that its risk factors extend beyond genetics. Some stud

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问题     The cause of Alzheimer’s disease is unknown, but various studies suggest that its risk factors extend beyond genetics. Some studies have associated the disease with a lack of physical activity. Others have linked Alzheimer’s disease to a lack of stimulating brainwork—fitting a use-it-or-lose-it situation of cognitive decline.
    A new study supports the view that both kinds of inactivity pose risks. People who have the memory loss, confusion, and disorientation of Alzheimer’s disease in old age were generally less active physically and intellectually between the ages of 20 and 60 than were people who don’t have the disease, according to study coauthor Robert P. Friedland, a neurologist at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine in Cleveland, and his colleagues.
    After establishing an average overall activity level for all the study’s participants, the researchers discovered that the Alzheimer’s patients were nearly four times as likely as the people without Alzheimer’s to fall below that average. In particular, the non-Alzheimer’s volunteers had devoted more time on average between ages 40 and 60 to intellectual activities and less to passive ones than had those who developed the disease. The only single activity in which Alzheimer’s patients on average significantly outperformed their counterparts was watching television, Friedland says.
    While certain genetic factors seem to influence the brain deterioration associated with Alzheimer’s, these don’t account for all cases of the disease. Indeed, studies of genetically similar people living in separate countries show divergent rates of Alzheimer’s disease.
    The new study accounted for differences in education and income but not occupation. It doesn’t point to a cause of Alzheimer’s or even predict who might develop the disease, but it does reinforce the value of remaining physically and mentally active, Friedland says. From an evolutionary standpoint, people are still physically designed to be active hunters and gatherers. "Being a couch potato," he says, "is not our natural state."
    Intellectual stimulation may work the same way, he says. Studies indicate that a higher educational level makes a person less likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease. Some researchers suggest that challenging the brain builds reserves of functional brain tissue that protect people against the disease.
    "This is a very intriguing study" built on "extremely rigorous" data collection, says Mary S. Mittelman, a scientist at New York University School of Medicine. However, she wonders why some people are active during their middle years while others aren’t. Could it be that a sedentary lifestyle really contributes to the development of Alzheimer’s, or does the illness begin early in life and subtly steer a person toward such a lifestyle? " It could be a combination of both," Friedland says.
The word "sedentary"(Line 3, Para. 7) means_________.
选项 A、involving much sitting
B、showing physical fatigue
C、involving much standing
D、showing mental tiredness
答案A
解析 语义题。文章开篇就指出缺乏体力活动可能会导致阿尔茨海默病。第五段第二句再次表明：研究虽然没有指出阿尔茨海默病的起因，甚至不能预见谁有可能患上这种病，但它确实强调了保持体力活跃的重要性。最后一段第二句指出：然而她仍然不明白，为什么有些人在中年时期很活跃，而另外一些人则不。接着提出自己的问题：sedentary生活方式真能导致阿尔茨海默病的发生，还是早就有这种病的轻微症状而使人不知不觉地采取了这样的生活方式呢?由此可以看出，这里sedentary lifestyle是指前面提到的那种体力活动不活跃的、不爱运动的生活方式。此外，从第五段末句中的couch potato(生活懒散的人，尤指长时间看电视的人)也可以判断出，sedentary意为“久坐的，不动的”，故[A]为答案。
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