對於托福考生來說，想要取得比較理想的成績，閱讀理解是關鍵之一。下面，小編就爲大家送上一篇託福閱讀理解文章。
if you exhibit positive traits such as honesty and helpfulness， the chances are that you will be perceived as a good looking person， for a new study has found that the perception of physical attractiveness is influenced by a person's personality.
the study， led by gary w. lewandowski， jr， found that people who exhibit negative traits， such as unfairness and rudeness， appear to be less physically attractive to observers.
in the study， the participants viewed photographs of opposite-sex individuals and rated them for attractiveness before and after being provided with information on personality traits.
after personality information was received， participants also rated the desirability of each individual as a friend and as a dating partner.
information on personality was found to significantly alter perceived desirability， showing that cognitive processes modify judgments of attractiveness.
"perceiving a person as having a desirable personality makes the person more suitable in general as a close relationship partner of any kind，" said lewandowski.
the findings show that a positive personality leads to greater desirability as a friend， which leads to greater desirability as a romantic partner and， ultimately， to being viewed as more physically attractive.
the findings remained consistent regardless of how "attractive" the individual was initially perceived to be， or of the participants' current relationship status or commitment level with a partner.
what would you think of this lady's physical attractiveness if she exhibited bad personal traits?
"this research provides a more positive alternative by reminding people that personality goes a long way toward determining your attractiveness; it can even change people's impressions of how good looking you are，" said lewandowski.
附：如何在閱讀理解中精讀詞?
單詞量不夠一直是很多考生閱讀時遇到的障礙之一。考生除了通過背詞彙書提高詞彙量之外，也可以利用託福閱讀文章來積累新詞彙。具體該如何操作呢?首先，考生將一篇託福閱讀文章中不認識的單詞劃出來，標上序號，然後整理到筆記本上。整理完成後，很多考生自然會想到通過查閱詞典來記錄單詞的意思。事實上，考生在精讀時，不要過分依賴詞典，而是多嘗試練習猜詞的方法，這樣真正上考場時，考生遇到生詞不會過分緊張。具體來說，在查閱詞典之前，考生應該先根據單詞所在的上下文語境猜測單詞的含義，然後再通過查閱詞典來進行覈實，最後將正確含義記錄在筆記本上。
是不是所有自己不認識的`單詞都需要仔細背誦呢?當然不是。託福閱讀文章具有多學科的特點，所以，勢必會有很多學科詞彙是考生所不認識的，對於專業的學科詞彙，考生只要做到識記含義即可，比如，perennial (多年生植物)、biennial (兩年生植物)、annual (一年生植物)等植物學詞彙。那麼，哪些詞彙是必須認真背誦與掌握的呢?簡單地說，就是那些影響考生理解句子的單詞。以下面這個例句爲例。
Papermaking spread quickly to Egypt—and eventually to Sicily and Spain—but it was several centuries before paper supplantedparchment for copies of the Koran, probably because of the conservative nature of religious art and its practitioners. (TPO 34 “Islamic Art and the Book”)
大部分考生在精讀這句話時會查閱這四個劃線的單詞，其中Koran表示伊斯蘭教中的《古蘭經》，這一專有名詞考生只作基本瞭解即可，因爲考生即使不認識這個單詞，也不會干擾對句子的理解。而其餘的三個單詞supplant (取代)、parchment (羊皮卷)、conservative (保守的)都會妨礙考生對原句的理解，如果考生不認識這些單詞，就會很難理解出句子的意思爲“經過多個世紀之後，紙張才取代羊皮卷用來抄寫某個東西”這個關鍵信息，也會不明白because of後面提及的原因究竟是什麼。從詞性的角度來說，影響句子理解的單詞一般是動詞和形容詞，因爲它們通常透露着原句的重要細節。從託福閱讀考試來說，動詞和形容詞也是詞彙題比較“青睞”的考查對象。
此外，考生還可以從託福閱讀文章中積累寫作中可以用到的單詞或詞組。以下面例句爲例。
In the wake of the Roman Empire’s conquest of Britain in the first century A.D., a large number of troops stayed in the new province, and these troops had a considerable impact on Britain with their camps, fortifications (碉堡), and participation in the local economy. (TPO 19 “The Roman Army’s Impact on Britain”)
考生可能不認識considerable，查閱後會知道它意爲“相當大的;重要的”，那麼have a considerable on sth.就表示“對……產生重大影響”，這個詞組在很多寫作話題中都可以使用，考生可以將其作爲寫作表達積累起來，比如，考生要表達“閱讀對人的性格產生着重大影響”的含義，則可以說：“Reading books has a considerable impact on people’s characters.”
精讀詞彙的最後一步就是在筆記本上把那些需要重點記憶的單詞用熒光筆再次強調突出，然後多花時間進行重點背誦和記憶。
