Task 2

　　Directions: This task is the same as Task 1. The 5 questions or unfinished statements are numbered 41 to 45.

　　The human body has developed its millions of nerves to be highly aware of what goes on both inside and outside of it.

　　This helps us adjust to the outside world. Without our nerves and our brain, which is a system of nerves, we couldn’t know whats happening. But we pay for our sensitivity. We can feel pain when the slightest thing is wrong with any part of our body. The history of torture ( 折磨 ) is based on the human body being open to pain.

　　But there is a way to handle pain. Look at the Indian fakir ( 苦行僧 ) who sits on a bed of nails. Fakirs can put a needle fight through an arm, and feel no pain. This ability that some humans have developed to handle pain should give us ideas about how the mind can deal with pain.

　　The big thing in withstanding pain is our attitude toward it. If the dentist says, "This will hurt a little," it helps us to accept the pain. By staying relaxed, and by treating the pain as an interesting sensation ( 感觉 ), we can handle the pain without falling apart. After all, although pain is an unpleasant sensation, it is still a sensation, and sensations are the stuff of life.

　　41. The human body has developed a system of nerves that enables us to

　　A) stay relaxed

　　B) avoid pain

　　C) stand torture

　　D) feel pain

　　42. What does the writer mean by saying "we pay for our sensitivity" in the first   paragraph?

　　A) We have to take care of our sense of pain.

　　B) We suffer from our sense of feeling.

　　C) We should try hard to resist pain.

　　D) We are hurt when we feel pain.

　　43. When the author mentions the Indian fakir, he shows that

　　A) fakirs possess magic power

　　B) Indians are not afraid of pain

　　C) people can learn to cope with pain

　　D) some people are born without a sense of pain

　　44. What is essential for people to stand pain according to the writer?

　　A) Their relaxation¹.

　　B) Their interest.

　　C) Their nerves.

　　D) Their attitude.

　　45. The author believes that

　　A) feeling pain is part of our life

　　B) pain should be avoided at all costs

　　C) feeling pain can be an interesting thing

　　D) magic power is essential for reducing pain