2009年6月英語四級(jí)閱讀沖刺倒計(jì)時(shí)(倒數(shù)19天)

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　　The medical world is gradually realizing that the quality of the environment in hospitals may play a significant role in the process of recovery from illness.

　　As part of a nationwide effort in Britain to bring art out of the galleries and into public places, some of the country’s most talented artists have been called in to transform older hospitals and to soften the hard edges of modern buildings. Of the 2,500 National Health Service hospitals in Britain, almost 100 now have significant collections of contemporary art in corridors, waiting areas and treatment rooms.

　　These recent initiatives owe a great deal to one artist, Peter Senior, who set up his studio at a Manchester Hospital in northeastern England during the early 1970s. He felt the artist had lost his place in modern society, and that art should be enjoyed by a wider audience.

　　A typical hospital waiting room might have as many as 5,000 visitors each week. What a better place to hold regular exhibitions of art! Senior held the first exhibition of his own paintings in the outpatients waiting are of the Manchester Royal Hospital in 1975. Believed to be Britain’s first hospital artist, Senior was so much in demand that he was soon joined by a team of six young art school graduates,

　　The effect is striking. Now in the corridors and waiting rooms the visitor experiences a full view of fresh colors, playful images and restful courtyards.

　　The quality of the environment may reduce the need for expensive drugs when a patient is recovering from an illness. A study has shown that patients who had a view onto a garden needed half the number of strong painkillers compared with patients who had no view at all or only a brick wall to look at.

　　1. The phrase “these recent initiatives” (Line 1, Para .3) in this context refers to ____.

　　A) regular art exhibitions in hospitals

　　B) transformations of older hospitals

　　C) exhibitions of paintings in galleries

　　D) establishment of studios in northeast England

　　2. The writer mentions the six young art school graduates in order to show ______.

　　A) visitors to hospitals are warmly received

　　B) the role of the hospital environment is being recognized

　　C) the contribution of Peter Senior is highly appreciated

　　D) the hard edges of hospitals are being restored

　　3. The aim of art exhibitions British hospitals encouraged was _____.

　　A) to alter the appearance of older buildings

　　B) to reduce the need for expensive drugs

　　C) to appeal to a larger audience

　　D) to improve the quality of the hospital environment