Store owners have been inventing new tricks to get consumers into their stores and purchasing their goods. Even as we find new strategies to resist, neuroscientists (神经科学家) are employed at marketing agencies across the country to best figure out what is going through a consumer’s brain at each point in the decision process.
商店老板一直在发明新招数，让消费者进入他们的商店，购买他们的商品。即使我们找到新的策略来抵御,被雇佣在全国的营销机构的神经科学家最好找出正在经历一场消费者大脑决策过程的每一点。
We consumers overspend due to the fact that we have a fear of missing the really good deal or having to pay more for the same thing and lose money. Normally, the prefrontal cortex ( 前 额皮 层 ) controls our emotional reactions to things, and keeps us from acting unreasonably by calming down our fears. But an advertiser can disturb our prefrontal cortex just by displaying flashy deal signs, encouraging（现在分词做状语） it to do math on how much money we might save now by buying more of something we don’t actually need yet.
我们的消费者过度消费是因为我们害怕错过真正划算的交易，或者不得不为同样的东西付更多的钱而赔钱。通常,前额皮层控制我们的情绪反应,通过平息我们的恐惧来阻止我们做出不合理的行为。但是广告商可以通过展示花哨的交易标志来干扰我们的前额皮质，鼓励它计算一下，如果我们现在多买一些我们实际上还不需要的东西，可以省下多少钱。
Nostalgia, that regretful affection for past events, is another strong influencer during the holiday season, and it’s shaped by emotion. Emotion—whether good or bad—enhances the formation of memories, engaging（现在分词做状语） more parts of the brain. So hearing a nephew singing a carol, for instance, might reawaken memories associated with that particular song in a much more powerful way than hearing that same nephew sing another song. These kinds of memories are brought back even more easily by sensory input. This might be why we are often greeted by a sensory reminder everywhere we go in a month.
怀旧，即对过去事件的遗憾情感，是假期期间另一个强大的影响因素，它是由情感塑造的。无论是好是坏的情绪都会增强记忆的形成，使大脑的更多部分参与其中。例如，听到一个侄子唱颂歌，可能会以一种比听到同一个侄子唱另一首歌更有力的方式重新唤起与那首歌相关的记忆。这种记忆通过感官输入更容易恢复。这可能就是为什么我们在一个月的时间里无论走到哪里都会受到感官上的提醒。
Wherever you purchase gifts, there are social influences on what you buy as well. The holidays are a time when we are especially conditioned to pay more for the label because we’re buying gifts. Receiving a brand-name gift（动名词短语做主语） sends the message that “this person has spent more on me, so he or she must value me more.” And it makes sense. If two things seem pretty much the same, how do I know which to choose? Humans have survived as a social species, and we have to rely on each other. So when our brains are trying to make decisions, one of the shortcuts is to assume that if a lot of other people prefer something (and higher cost is often a predictor of that), then there must be a reason.
无论你在哪里购买礼物，都会受到社会的影响。节日期间，我们特别习惯于为品牌多花钱，因为我们买礼物。收到一件名牌礼物会传递这样的信息:“这个人在我身上花了更多的钱，所以他或她一定更看重我。”这是有道理的。如果两件事看起来差不多，我怎么知道该选择哪一件呢?人类作为一个社会物种生存了下来，我们必须互相依赖。因此，当我们的大脑试图做出决定时，其中一个捷径就是假设，如果很多人都喜欢某样东西(而更高的成本往往预示着这一点)，那么肯定是有原因的。
Much of our holiday spending is driven by unplanned purchases. Plan ahead, resist the urge to purchase in the moment, make notes for comparison shopping, and if the deal is actually good, then it will hold up to inspection and you’ll feel good about your purchases later. Before you blow your budget this season, remember that your brain might be fooling you into that next purchase.
我们的假日消费有很大一部分是由计划外的购买驱动的。提前计划，*制抵**一时的冲动，为比较购物做笔记，如果交易真的很好，那么它将经得起检验，你以后会对你买的东西感觉很好。在你挥霍掉这一季的预算之前，请记住，你的大脑可能会骗你去买下一件东西。
38.From Paragraph 2, we learn that .
A.the prefrontal cortex is the calculation center
B.the common consumers always act unreasonably
C.the sight of flashy deal signs may fill consumers with fear
D.the advertisers make consumers pay more for the same thing
解析：本题考查段落细节，把选项与原文核对，符合的即为正确答案。本题答案来源为：But an advertiser can disturb our prefrontal cortex just by displaying flashy deal signs, encouraging（现在分词做状语） it to do math on how much money we might save now by buying more of something we don’t actually need yet.
39.According to Paragraph 3, which of the following can work on consumers?
A. Creating a festival atmosphere.
B. Following the current fashion.
C. Preparing more free samples.
D. Offering a bigger discount.
解析：本题考查段落细节，看懂即可答对；答案来源为：Nostalgia, that regretful affection for past events, is another strong influencer during the holiday season, and it’s shaped by emotion
40.Why do we buy brand-name gifts during the holiday?
A. They are more reliable.
B. They are a sign of social status.
C. They make people feel valued.
D. They are favored by most people.
解析：第三题的答案来自Receiving a brand-name gift（动名词短语做主语） sends the message that “this person has spent more on me, so he or she must value me more.” And it makes sense
41.To avoid overspending, the author suggests we .
A. buy in the moment
B. reduce our budget
C. return unnecessary products
D. make a plan in advance
解析：最后一题或者考察主旨；或者考察最后一题的细节。本题考察细节，答案来源为:Plan ahead, resist the urge to purchase in the moment, make notes for comparison shopping, and if the deal is actually good, then it will hold up to inspection and you’ll feel good about your purchases later.
词汇拓展与学习：
carve/kɑːv/ vt. 雕刻；切开；开创vi. 切开；做雕刻工作
scar /skɑː(r)/
scale/skeɪl/ n. 规模；比例；鳞；刻度；天平；数值范围vi/vt. 衡量；攀登；依比例决定
character/ˈkærəktə(r)/ n. 性格，品质；特性；角色；(计)字符vt. 印，刻；使具有特征
characteristic/ˌkærəktəˈrɪstɪk/adj. 典型的；特有的；表示特性的n.特征/性；复数 characteristics
中文里说“刻画”人物性格，而character的ch发K的音，与“刻画”的“刻”，声母一致。
在古代，人们用石头等在岩石，竹简等物体的表面上，刻画曲线，直线，字符，线条，画等；汉语里讲：刻画人物入木三分，意为描写给读者留下了深刻印象。从文字的起源来看，早期的文字都是古人刻画在岩石表面，木头、龟壳等物体的表面的字符，线条等，例如甲骨文。后期随着生产力，文明的发展，而逐渐丰富，成体系，成熟演变成成熟的文字体系；英语是表音文字，很多单词从发音的角度来学习，其实很简单，就是拟声词而已。
calculate 计算;则源自拉丁文calculatus，后来表示使用石子计数的做法。英语单词calcium（钙）的也与calculus有关，因为石头的主要成分就是钙。
calculus/'kælkjʊləs/n.结石，微积分
calculate/'kælkjʊleɪt/ v.计算，打算，预测 calculation
结构分析：calc（石灰岩）+ul（指小形式）+ate（动词后缀）→拿小块石→在地上写写画画→计算
calculated/ˈkælkjuleɪtɪd/ adj. 计算出的；蓄意的，适合的；有计划的v. 计/打算；估计
（calculate的过去式和过去分词）
calculating/ˈkælkjuleɪtɪŋ/ adj.计算的；深谋远虑的；精明的v 计算（calculate的ing形式）
calcium/'kælsɪəm/ n.钙
vivo /ˈviːvəʊ/ adj.生动的；活泼的（等于 vivace） adv.活泼地（等于 vivace）
vitamin/ 'vɪtəmɪn/ n. 维生素
vivid /ˈvɪvɪd/ adj.生动的；鲜明的；鲜艳的, 栩栩如生的
vital /'vaɪtl/ adj. 至关重要的
revive /rɪ'vaɪv/ vi/vt. 复兴，恢复精神
revival rɪˈvaɪvl/. n. 复兴；复活；苏醒；恢复精神；再生效
survive /sə'vaɪv/ vt. 幸存；生还；幸免于；比...活得长vi. 幸存；活下来
survival /sə'vaɪvəl/ n. 幸存，幸存者
viral/ ˈvaɪrəl] / adj .病毒性的
词根ject表示“投，扔”
project/ˈprɒdʒekt/ n/v.工程，方案，计划，工程 ；有“预测”的含义；
object /ɒbdʒɪkt/ n. 目标；物体；客体；宾语vt. 提出…作为反对的理由vi. 反对；拒绝
objective /əbˈdʒektɪv/ n. 目的/标宾格adj. 客观（存在）的；
subject/ˈsʌbdʒɪkt/ n. 主题；起因；科目；主词adv. 在……的条件下v. （使）臣服
subjective/səbˈdʒektɪv/ adj. 主观的；个人的；自觉的
reject /rɪˈdʒekt/ vt. 拒绝；排斥；*制抵**；丢弃 n. 被弃之物或人；次品
rejection /rɪˈdʒekʃn/ n. 抛弃；拒绝；被抛弃的东西；盖帽
inject /ɪnˈdʒekt/ vt. 注入/射