Racket, dinclamor, noise, whateveryouwanttocallit, unwantedsoundisAmerica'smostwidespreadnuisance. Butnoiseismorethanjustanuisance. Itconstitutesarealandpresentdangertopeople'shealth. Dayandnight, athome, atwork, andatplay, noisecanproduceseriousphysicalandpsychologicalstress. Nooneisimmunetothisstress. Thoughweseemtoadjusttonoisebyignoringit, theear, infact, neverclosesandthebodystillresponds—sometimeswithextremetension, astoastrangesoundinthenight.
Theannoyancewefeelwhenfacedwithnoiseisthemostcommonoutwardsymptomofthestressbuildingupinsideus. Indeed, becauseirritabilityissoapparent, legislatorshavemadepublicannoyancethebasisofmanynoiseabatementprograms. Themoresubtleandmoreserioushealthhazardsassociatedwithstresscausedbynoisetraditionallyhavebeengivenmuchlessattention. Nevertheless, whenweareannoyedormadeirritablebynoise, weshouldconsiderthesesymptomsfairwarningthatotherthingmaybehappeningtous, someofwhichmaybedamagingtoourhealth.
Ofmanyhealthhazardstonoise, hearinglossisthemostclearlyobservableandmeasurablebyhealthprofessionals. Theotherhazardsarehardertopindown. Formanyofus, theremaybeariskthatexposuretothestressofnoiseincreasessusceptibilitytodiseaseandinfection. Themoresusceptibleamongusmayexperiencenoiseasacomplicatingfactorinheartproblemsandotherdiseases. Noisethatcausesannoyanceandirritabilityinhealthpersonsmayhaveseriousconsequencesforthesealreadyillinmindorbody.
Noiseaffectsusthroughoutourlives. Forexample, thereareindicationsofeffectsontheunbornchildwhenmothersareexposedtoindustrialandenvironmentalnoise. Duringinfancyandchildhood, youngstersexposedtohighnoiselevelsmayhavetroublefallingasleepandobtainingnecessaryamountsofrest.
Why, then, istherenotgreateralarmaboutthesedangers? Perhapsitisbecausethelinkbetweennoiseandmanydisabilitiesordiseaseshasnotyetbeenconclusivelydemonstrated. Perhapsitisbecausewetendtodismissannoyanceasapricetopayforlivinginthemodernworld. Itmayalsobebecausewestillthinkofhearinglossasonlyanoccupationalhazard.
1.InParagraph 1, thephrase "immuneto" areusedtomean ___.
A.unaffectedby
B.hurtby
C.unlikelytobeseenby
D.unknownby
2.Theauthor'sattitudetowardnoisewouldbestbedescribedas ___.
A.unrealistic
B.traditional
C.concerned
D.hysterical
3.Whichofthefollowingbeststatesthemainideaofthepassage?
A.Noiseisamajorproblem; mostpeoplerecognizeitsimportance.
B.Althoughnoisecanbeannoying, itisnotamajorproblem.
C.Noiseisamajorproblemandhasnotyetbeenrecognizedassuch.
D.Noiseisamajorproblemaboutwhichnothingcanbedone.
4.Theauthorcondemnsnoiseessentiallybecauseit ___.
A.isagainstthelaw
B.canmakesomepeopleirritable
C.isanuisance
D.inagangertopeople'shealth
5.Theauthorwouldprobablyconsiderresearchabouttheeffectsnoisehasonpeopletobe ___.
A.unimportant
B.impossible.
C.awasteofmoney
D.essential