Section B: Information Matching
Directions: In this section, you are going to read a passage with ten statements attached to it. Each statement contains information given in one of the paragraphs. Identify the paragraph from which the information is derived. You may choose a paragraph more than once. Each paragraph is marked with a letter. Answer the questions by marking the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 2.
Why facts don’t change our minds
[A] The economist J. K. Galbraith once wrote, “Faced with a choice between changing one’s mind and proving there is no need to do so, almost everyone gets busy with the proof.”
[B] Leo Tolstoy was even bolder. “The most difficult subjects can be explained to the most slow-witted man if he has not formed any idea of them already; but the simplest thing cannot be made clear to the most intelligent man if he is firmly persuaded that he knows already, without a shadow of doubt, what is laid before him.”
[C] What’s going on here? Why don’t facts change our minds? And why would someone continue to believe a false or inaccurate idea anyway? How do such behaviors serve us? Humans need a reasonably accurate view of the world in order to survive. If your model of reality is wildly different from the actual world, then you struggle to take effective actions each day.
[D] To understand the power of confirmation biases and other self-serving belief systems, we need to understand how ideas are formed. The process of believing something isn’t a single, logical step. Instead, it’s a web of interconnected beliefs that form a worldview. When you encounter a new fact, you don’t evaluate it in isolation; you evaluate it against the entire structure of what you already believe.
[E] This worldview serves a purpose beyond just being “true.” Our beliefs are tied to our sense of identity, our social groups, and our sense of belonging. If you challenge someone’s core beliefs, you aren’t just disagreeing with a fact—you’re threatening their community, their tribe, and their very sense of self. To abandon a cherished belief is often to risk social isolation, a powerful deterrent to change.
[F] We also form beliefs based on how they make us feel. We tend to accept ideas that make us feel good, and reject those that cause discomfort, regardless of their factual basis. This is called the affect heuristic. A belief that aligns with our values or makes us feel safe will be far more resilient to contradictory evidence than one that challenges our self-image.
[G] This process is compounded by the way we consume information. In the age of the internet, we are increasingly able to curate our own reality, surrounding ourselves with like-minded people and sources that reinforce our existing views. This creates echo chambers, where dissenting facts are filtered out before we even see them.
[H] Even when we are exposed to facts that contradict our beliefs, we often don’t process them objectively. Instead, we engage in motivated reasoning, working hard to rationalize away the new information. We might dismiss the source as biased, find a trivial flaw in the data, or reinterpret the fact to fit our existing narrative. The stronger our initial belief, the more motivated we are to protect it.
[I] Changing our minds also requires a great deal of cognitive effort. Our brains are wired to conserve energy, and maintaining a consistent set of beliefs is far easier than constantly updating them. This is known as cognitive inertia. It takes far less effort to stick with what we already believe than to re-evaluate our worldview from scratch.
[J] The desire to fit in with our social groups is another powerful force. Humans are inherently social creatures, and our survival has always depended on being accepted by our tribe. Believing what the group believes is a way to signal loyalty and maintain our place in the community. To deviate from the group consensus is to risk being ostracized, a consequence we are evolutionarily programmed to avoid.
[K] There’s also the issue of sunk cost. The longer we’ve held a belief, the more time, energy, and even social capital we’ve invested in it. Admitting we were wrong feels like a waste of all that effort. We become attached to our beliefs, not just because they’re true, but because they’re ours.
[L] The way information is presented also plays a role. Dry, abstract facts are far less persuasive than vivid, emotional stories. A personal anecdote that confirms our bias will stick with us far longer than a statistical study that contradicts it. This is the availability heuristic at work.
[M] The most heated arguments often occur between people on opposite ends of the spectrum, but the most frequent learning occurs from people who are nearby. The closer you are to someone, the more likely it becomes that the one or two beliefs you don’t share will bleed over into your own mind and shape your thinking. The further away an idea is from your current position, the more likely you are to reject it outright. When it comes to changing people’s minds, it is very difficult to jump from one side to another. You can’t jump down the spectrum. You have to slide down it.
[N] Any idea that is sufficiently different from your current worldview will feel threatening. And the best place to ponder a threatening idea is in a non-threatening environment. As a result, books are often a better vehicle, for transforming beliefs than conversations or debates. In conversation, people have to carefully consider their status and appearance. They want to save face and avoid looking stupid. When confronted with an uncomfortable set of facts, the tendency is often to double down on their current position rather than publicly admit to being wrong. Books resolve this tension. With a book, the conversation takes place inside someone’s head and without the risk of being judged by others. It’s easier to be open-minded when you aren’t feeling defensive.
[O] There is another reason bad ideas continue to live on, which is that people continue to talk about them. Silence is death for any idea. An idea that is never spoken or written down dies with the person who conceived it. Ideas can only be remembered when they are repeated. They can only be believed when they are repeated. I have already pointed out that people repeat ideas to signal they are part of the same social group. But here’s a crucial point most people miss: People also repeat bad ideas when they complain about them. Before you can criticize an idea, you have to reference that idea. You end up repeating the ideas you’re hoping people will forget—but, of course, people can’t forget them because you keep talking about them. The more you repeat a bad idea, the more likely people are to believe it.
[P] Let’s call this phenomenon Clear’s Law of Recurrence: The number of people who believe an idea is directly proportional to the number of times it has been repeated during the last year—even if the idea is false.
36. According to the author, humans can hardly survive if separated from their community.
37. People often accept false beliefs because they prioritize social bonds rather than facts.
38. Most often people learn from those close to them.
39. Sometimes people adopt certain beliefs in order to leave a favorable impression on those dear to them.
40. Compared with face-to-face communication, books often provide a better medium for changing people’s beliefs.
41. On many occasions in daily life, people benefit more from their social bonds than from knowing the truth.
42. If you want to change somebody’s beliefs, you should first establish social connection with them.
43. Humans cannot survive without a fair knowledge of the actual world.
44. Repetition of bad ideas increases their chances of being accepted.
45. Nobody is willing to give up their beliefs at the risk of getting isolated.
Answers & Explanations (答案与解析)
36. J。解析：题干意为“作者认为，人类如果脱离了社群就很难生存”。对应 [J] 段的 “Humans are inherently social creatures, and our survival has always depended on being accepted by our tribe... To deviate from the group consensus is to risk being ostracized, a consequence we are evolutionarily programmed to avoid.”（人类天生是社会性动物，我们的生存一直依赖于被我们的部落接纳……偏离群体共识就是冒着被排斥的风险，这是我们在进化中被设定要避免的后果）。survival depended on being accepted by our tribe 对应 can hardly survive if separated from their community。
37. E。解析：题干意为“人们经常接受虚假的信仰，因为他们优先考虑社会纽带而不是事实”。对应 [E] 段的 “Our beliefs are tied to our sense of identity, our social groups... To abandon a cherished belief is often to risk social isolation...”（我们的信念与我们的身份感、我们的社会群体……联系在一起。放弃一个珍视的信念往往意味着冒着社会孤立的风险）。这意味着人们会为了维持群体关系而保留信仰（优先于事实），这同时也是本段的核心观点。
38. M。解析：题干意为“最常见的情况是，人们向亲近的人学习”。对应 [M] 段的第一句 “...but the most frequent learning occurs from people who are nearby.”（……但最频繁的学习发生在我们附近的人身上）。most frequent learning occurs from people who are nearby 直接对应 Most often people learn from those close to them。
39. J。解析：题干意为“有时人们采纳某些信仰是为了给他们亲近的人留下好印象”。对应 [J] 段的 “Believing what the group believes is a way to signal loyalty and maintain our place in the community.”（相信群体所相信的东西是表明忠诚并维持我们在社群中地位的一种方式）。“表明忠诚以维持地位”也就是题干中所表达的“为了给亲近的人/群体留下好印象而采纳信仰”。
40. N。解析：题干意为“与面对面交流相比，书籍往往为改变人们的信念提供更好的媒介”。对应 [N] 段的 “As a result, books are often a better vehicle, for transforming beliefs than conversations or debates.”（因此，在改变信念方面，书籍往往是比对话或辩论更好的媒介）。better medium 对应 better vehicle，face-to-face communication 对应 conversations or debates。
41. E。解析：题干意为“在日常生活的许多场合，人们从他们的社会纽带中获益，比了解真相中获益更多”。对应 [E] 段的首句 “This worldview serves a purpose beyond just being ‘true.’”（这种世界观的目的不仅仅是“真实的”）。紧接着解释了信念与社会群体的绑定关系。说明在很多时候，社会关系带来的功能超越了追求真相本身。注：考试允许段落复选（You may choose a paragraph more than once），E 段也是 37 题的最佳出处。
42. M。解析：题干意为“如果你想改变某人的信仰，你应该首先与他们建立社会联系”。对应 [M] 段的 “The closer you are to someone, the more likely it becomes that the one or two beliefs you don’t share will bleed over into your own mind... When it comes to changing people’s minds, it is very difficult to jump from one side to another... You have to slide down it.”（你和某人越亲近，你不认同的一两个观点就越有可能渗透到你自己的脑海中……当涉及到改变人们的想法时，很难从一边跳到另一边……你必须滑下去）。这说明亲近度（即社会联系）对于改变思想至关重要。
43. C。解析：题干意为“如果没有对真实世界相当的了解，人类就无法生存”。对应 [C] 段的 “Humans need a reasonably accurate view of the world in order to survive.”（人类需要对世界有一个相当准确的看法才能生存）。fair knowledge of the actual world 对应 reasonably accurate view of the world。
44. O。解析：题干意为“重复坏想法增加了它们被接受的机会”。对应 [O] 段的最后一句 “The more you repeat a bad idea, the more likely people are to believe it.”（你越是重复一个坏主意，人们就越有可能相信它）。repetition 对应 repeat，increases their chances of being accepted 对应 more likely people are to believe it。
45. E。解析：题干意为“没有人愿意冒着被孤立的风险放弃他们的信仰”。对应 [E] 段的最后一句 “To abandon a cherished belief is often to risk social isolation, a powerful deterrent to change.”（放弃一个珍视的信念往往意味着冒着社会孤立的风险，这是改变的强大阻碍因素）。give up their beliefs 对应 abandon a cherished belief，at the risk of getting isolated 对应 risk social isolation。
核心搭配与高分句型
【核心搭配与高频短语】
tied to：与...联系在一起，绑定（Our beliefs are tied to our sense of identity）
regardless of：不管，不顾（regardless of their factual basis）
align with：与...保持一致（A belief that aligns with our values）
rationalize away：为...找借口而对...置之不理（working hard to rationalize away the new information）
stick with：坚持，继续（stick with what we already believe）
deviate from：偏离，背离（deviate from the group consensus）
double down on：加倍下注，变本加厉（double down on their current position）
【亮点句型解析】
The more... the more... 比较级句型：
"The closer you are to someone, the more likely it becomes that the one or two beliefs you don’t share will bleed over into your own mind and shape your thinking."
（你和某人越亲近，你不认同的一两个观点就越有可能渗透到你自己的脑海中并塑造你的思维。）经典的双重比较级，逻辑清晰地表达了“亲近度”与“思想同化程度”的正向关联。
"The closer you are to someone, the more likely it becomes that the one or two beliefs you don’t share will bleed over into your own mind and shape your thinking."
（你和某人越亲近，你不认同的一两个观点就越有可能渗透到你自己的脑海中并塑造你的思维。）经典的双重比较级，逻辑清晰地表达了“亲近度”与“思想同化程度”的正向关联。
When it comes to... 固定句型：
"When it comes to changing people’s minds, it is very difficult to jump from one side to another."
（当谈到改变人们的想法时，很难从一边跳到另一边。）`when it comes to` 意为“当提到/涉及到...时”，其中 `to` 为介词，后接名词或动名词，是极高频的地道表达。
"When it comes to changing people’s minds, it is very difficult to jump from one side to another."
（当谈到改变人们的想法时，很难从一边跳到另一边。）`when it comes to` 意为“当提到/涉及到...时”，其中 `to` 为介词，后接名词或动名词，是极高频的地道表达。