Jim suffered heart problems. In conversation he expressed little joy and it seemed that his life was drawing to a close.
When his heart problems led to operation, Jim went through it successfully, and a full recovery was expected. Within days, however, his heart was not beating properly. Jim was rushed back to operation, but nothing was found to explain the cause of his illness. He died on the operating table on the day before his 48th birthday.
Dr. Bruce Smoller, a psychologist, had had many conversations with him, and the more he learned, the stranger he realized Jim's case was. When Jim was a child, his father, a teacher, suffered a heart attack and stayed home to recover. One morning Jim asked his father to look over his homework, promising to come home from school at noon to pick it up. His father agreed, but when Jim returned his father had died. Jim's father was 48.
“I think all his life Jim believed he killed his father,” Dr. Smoller says. “He felt that if he had not asked him to look at his homework, his father would have lived. Jim had been troubled by the idea. The operation was the trial he had expected for forty years. “ Smoller believes that Jim willed himself not to live to the age of 48.
Jim's case shows the powerful role that attitude plays in physical health, and that childhood experiences produce far-reaching effect on the health of grown-ups. Although most cases are less direct than Jim's, studies show that childhood events, besides genes, may well cause such midlife diseases as cancer, heart disease and mental illness.
41. Jim was sent back to operation because ________.
A. his heart didn't work well B. he expected a full recovery
C. his life was drawing to a close
D. the first one wasn't well performed
42. What made Dr. Smoller feel strange about Jim's case?
A. Jim died at a young age.
B. Jim died on the operating table.
C. Both Jim and his father died of the same disease.
D. Jim's death is closely connected with his father's.
43. From Smoller's words, we can infer that ________.
A. Jim's father cared little about his study
B. Smoller agreed that Jim did kill his father
C. Jim thought he would be punished some day
D. Smoller believed Jim wouldn't live to the age of 48
44. Which of the following could have strong effect on one's physical health according to the text?
a. One’s genes. b. One’s life in childhood.
c. One’s physical education. d. The date of one’s birthday.
e. The opinions one has about something.
A. a, b, d B. a, b, e C. a, c, e D. b, c, d
45. Which of the following is true?
A. Both Jim and his father died at the age of 48.
B. Jim often asked his father to do his homework.
C. Jim was believed to kill his father.
D. Most childhood events can cause cancer, heart disease and mental illness.
