An article in Scientific America has pointed out that empirical research says that, actually, you think you’re more beautiful than you are. We have a deep-seated need to feel good about ourselves and we naturally employ a number of self-enhancing strategies to achieve this. Social psychologists have amassed oceans of research into what the call the “above average effect”, or“illusory superiority”, and shown that, for example, 70% of us rate ourselves as above average in leadership, 93% in driving and 85% at getting on well with others—all obviously statistical impossibilities.

empirical  a. 以实验（或经验）为依据的

deep-seated  a. 深层的；根深蒂固的

feel good about oneself  自我感觉良好

employ  v. 使用，采用

self-enhancing  自我提升、自我加强的

psychologist  n. 心理学家

amass  v. 聚集（尤指大量）

oceans of  海量的，极大量的

above-average effect  高于平均效应

illusory  a. 错觉的；虚假的

superiority  n. 优越感

rate... as...  把……评估为……

get on well with others  与他人相处融洽

《科学美国》的一篇文章指出，实证研究表明，事实上，你认为自己比自己漂亮。我们有一种根深蒂固的自我感觉的需要，我们自然会采用一些自我提升的策略来实现这一点。社会心理学家对所谓的“高于平均水平的影响”或“虚幻的优越感”进行了大量的研究，结果表明，例如，70%的人认为自己的领导能力高于平均水平，93%的人认为自己在驾驶方面高于平均水平，85%的人认为自己与他人相处融洽，这在统计上显然是不可能的。

We rose-tint our memories and put ourselves into self-affirming situations. We become defensive when criticized, and apply negative stereotypes to others to boost our own esteem, we stalk around thinking we’re hot stuff.

rose-tint  v. 染了玫瑰色，精饰、美化

defensive  a. 自卫的；戒备的

stereotype  n. （不合理的）刻板印象

boost  v. 促进；增加；增强

esteem  n. 尊重；尊敬

stalk  v. 高视阔步地走

hot stuff  奇才；非凡的人物

我们在回忆中振作起来，把自己置身于自我肯定的境地。当别人批评我们时，我们会变得防御性，对别人施加负面的刻板印象来提升我们的自尊，我们会四处游荡，以为自己是热门人物。

Psychologist and behavioral scientist Nicholas Epley oversaw a key studying into self-enhancement and attractiveness. Rather that have people simply rate their beauty compress with others, he asked them to identify an original photograph of themselves’ from a lineup including versions that had been altered to appear more and less attractive. Visual recognition, reads the study, is “an automatic psychological process, occurring rapidly and intuitively with little or no apparent conscious deliberation”. If the subjects quickly chose a falsely flattering image- which must did- they genuinely believed it was really how they looked.

self-enhancement  自我强化、自我拔高

rather... than...  不是……（，而是……）

identify  v. 确定；识别，辨认出

identify... from...  从……中辨别出……

lineup  n. 阵容；一组

visual recognition  面部识别

deliberation  n. 考虑；熟思

conscious deliberation  刻意的深思熟虑

flattering  a. 使人显得更漂亮的；讨好的

genuinely  ad. 真诚地；诚实地

心理学家和行为科学家尼古拉斯·艾普利（Nicholas Epley）主持了一项关于自我提升和吸引力的关键研究。他并不是让人们简单地给自己的美容品打分，而是让他们从一系列照片中找出一张自己的原版照片，这些照片经过修改后变得越来越不吸引人了。研究表明，视觉识别是“一个自动的心理过程，快速而直观地发生，很少或没有明显的有意识的思考”。如果受试者很快选择了一个虚假的奉承形象——这肯定是事实——他们真的相信这就是他们的样子。

Epley found no significant gender difference in responses. Nor was there any evidence that, those who self-enhance the must (that is, the participants who thought the most positively doctored picture were real) were doing so to make up for profound insecurities. In fact, those who thought that the images higherup the attractiveness scale were real directly corresponded with those who showed other makers for having higher self-esteem. “I don’t think the findings that we have are any evidence of personal delusion”, says Epley. “It’s a reflection simply of people generally thinking well of themselves’. If you are depressed, you won’t be self-enhancing.

doctor  v. 篡改，伪造

profound  a. 深刻的；极大的；严重的

delusion  n. 错觉；谬见；妄想

depressed  a. 沮丧的；压抑的

make up for  弥补

correspond with  符合，一致

think well of  赞赏；对……有好感；高度评价

艾普利在回答中没有发现显著的性别差异。也没有任何证据表明，那些自我增强“必须”的人（即那些认为最积极的篡改图片是真实的）这样做是为了弥补极度的不安全感。事实上，那些认为这些图片比吸引力更高的人，与那些向其他制作人展示更高自尊的人是直接对应的。“我不认为我们的发现是任何个人错觉的证据，”艾普利说。“这只是人们普遍认为自己很好的反映”。如果你抑郁，你就不会自我提升。

Knowing the results of Epley ‘s study, it makes sense that why people heat photographs of themselves viscerally-on one level, they don’t even recognize the person in the picture as themselves, Face book therefore ,is a self-enhancer’s paradise, where people can share only the most flattering photos, the cream of their wit ,style, beauty, intellect and lifestyle it’s not that people’s profiles are dishonest, says Catalina Toma of Wisconsin—Madison University ,”but they portray an idealized version of themselves.

make sense  有意义；讲得通

viscerally  ad. 发自肺腑地

on one level  在某种程度上

wit  n. 风趣

intellect  n. 智力，非凡的才智

profile  n. 印象，形象

portray  v. 描绘

idealise  v. 把……理想化

了解了埃普利的研究结果，我们可以理解为什么人们发自内心地加热自己的照片，他们甚至不认识照片中的人是自己，因此，脸书是自我提升的天堂，在那里人们只能分享最讨人喜欢的照片，他们智慧、风格、美丽的精华，威斯康星麦迪逊大学的Catalina Toma说：“并不是人们的个人资料不诚实，而是他们描绘了一个理想化的自我形象。

26. According to the first paragraph, social psychologist have found that ______.

[A] our self-ratings are unrealistically high

[B] illusory superiority is baseless effect

[C] our need for leadership is unnatural

[D] self-enhancing strategies are ineffective

27. Visual recognition is believed to be people’s______.

[A]rapid watching

[B]conscious choice

[C] intuitive response

[D]automatic self-defence

28. Epley found that people with higher self-esteem tended to______.

[A] underestimate their insecurities

[B] believe in their attractiveness

[C] cover up their depressions

[D] oversimplify their illusions

29. The word“viscerally”( para.5) is closest in meaning to_____.

[A]instinctively

[B]occasionally

[C]particularly

[D]aggressively

30. It can be inferred that Facebook is self-enhancer’s paradise because people can _____.

[A] present their dishonest profiles

[B] define their traditional life styles

[C] share their intellectual pursuits

[D] withhold their unflattering sides

ACBAD

26、根据题干定位至首段③句。该句shown that 引出社会心理学家发现的结果:三个数据70%.93%和85%以点概面，反映出大部分人对自己的评价是“高于平均"(rate ourselves as above average)破折号后转而指出这些数据从统计学角度来看都属于不可能事件。因此答案为[A],即社会心理学家发现我们对自身评价往往过高,不切实际。

27、根据题干定位至第三段③句，该句指出，”视觉识别”是一种无意识的自动心理过程，整个过程迅速而且基于本能.没有明显的刻意思考。因此正确答案为[C].

28、根据题干关键信息Epley found和higher self-esteem定位至第四段③句。该句指出，“认为美化过的照片是自己形象”这部分人与“在其他许多类似方面表现出较强自尊”的人是一致的those... directly corresponded with those...).即，自尊心较强的人往往对自身吸引力坚信不移，[B]正确。

29、根据题干信息定位至第五段①句。so viscerally修饰hate photographs of themselves,说明人们不喜欢自己照片的方式。而该词所在句为过渡句, knowing the results of Epley's study(承上)做伴随状语，解释说明主句即it makes sense that many people hate, .. so viscerally;因而viscerally词义首先应与上文艾普里研究结果直接相关。上文第三段表明“视觉识别”，即人们往往高估自己外貌的心理,是人们无意识的本能反应(automatic . intuitively . with little or no apparent conscious deliberation), 因而初步断定hate... so viscerally应为“下意识不喜欢自己的(真实)照片，因而选择美化照片”:其次，下文破折号后“他们甚至根本设意识到照片中的人正是自己"呼应前文，因此viscerally表示“本能地,无意识地”,[A]正确。

30、根据题干迅速定位至第五段②句。该句指出，人们通过Facebook可以只分享自己最漂亮的照片，以及智慧、风格、美丽、学识和生活方式等的精华部分换句话说就是人们可以掩饰自己的劣势或不吸引人的一面。另外，句中therefore 表示①②句间为因果关系:人们不愿承认自己的真实照片.而Facebook恰好能够满足这种心理。故而正确答案为[D]。