阅读理解模拟练习-2023届高三英语二轮复习

阅读理解 A [2022高考押题预测卷] 语篇类型：说明文 主题语境：人与自我 They say procrastination（拖延） is the thief of time—actually deadlines are. New research from the University of Otago has found that if you want someone to help you out with something, it is best not to set a deadline at all. But if you do set a deadline, make it short. Professor Stephen Knowles and his co-authors tested the effect of deadline length on task completion for their research published in Economic Inquiry. Participants were invited to complete an online survey concerning a charity donation. They were given either one week, one month, or no deadline to respond. Professor Knowles says that although the topic of the survey is about charity, the results apply to any situation where someone asks another person for help. The study found response rates to the survey were lowest for the one-month deadline and highest when no deadline was specified. No deadline and the one-week deadline led to many early responses, while a long deadline appeared to give people permission to procrastinate, and then forget. Professor Knowles wasn’t surprised to find that specifying a shorter deadline increased the chances of receiving a response compared to a longer deadline. However, he did find it interesting that they received the most responses when no deadline was specified. “We interpret this as evidence that specifying a longer deadline, as opposed to a short deadline or no deadline at all, removes the urgency to act,” he says. “People therefore put off undertaking the task, and since they are inattentive, postponing it results in lower response rates.” He says that it is possible that not specifying a deadline might still have led participants to assume that there is an unspoken deadline. Professor Knowles hopes his research can help reduce procrastination people do. “Many people procrastinate. They have the best intentions of helping someone out, but just do not get around to doing it.” 1. Why did Professor Knowles do the rese