영어 모의고사 (자동 편성)

Time blocking is a time-management technique in which a person ①divides the day into fixed blocks. Each block is then assigned to a single task. Instead of relying on a loose to-do list, the person decides exactly when each task ②will starting and end. This approach lowers the mental effort of deciding what to do next, since the schedule already provides the answer. It also limits multitasking, because each block ③is reserved for only one activity at a time. For instance, a student may block ninety minutes for math practice, ④leaving no room for messages or web browsing. Because each block has a clear boundary, unfinished work is ⑤less likely to quietly spread into the next task.

Choice architecture refers to how decisions are ①designed. It determines which option is automatically selected unless a person chooses otherwise, ②known as the default option. Research consistently shows that people tend to stick with whatever is already set, even when changing it takes only seconds. Organ donation is a well-known example. Countries ③which citizens are automatically registered as donors unless they opt out show much higher donation rates than opt-in countries. Retirement savings programs show a similar pattern, since employees ④automatically enrolled in a pension plan rarely cancel it. Voluntary sign-ups, in contrast, often delay indefinitely. Critics argue that default options can be manipulated to benefit companies, so transparency about how defaults are chosen becomes essential, and supporters insist it should be designed ⑤to support people's long-term interests.

Last January, Minji wrote the same resolution she always wrote: study English for an hour every day. By February, she had already ①quit, just as in previous years. Frustrated, she asked her teacher why her willpower always failed, and learned about a concept ②called implementation intentions. Instead of vaguely intending to study more, Minji made a precise plan: if she finished dinner, then she would study for thirty minutes. She also ③prepared a backup plan: if she felt too tired, then she would study for just ten minutes instead of skipping entirely. Because these plans removed the need to decide anything in the moment, starting became ④far more easily for Minji. By December, she had studied for eleven straight months, ⑤proving that clear if-then plans beat vague intentions.

Social media researchers use the term context collapse to describe what happens when a single online post reaches audiences that would normally remain ①separate in offline life. In daily interactions, people naturally adjust their tone and content depending on whether they are speaking with family, close friends, or professional colleagues. However, a typical social media feed ②merges these distinct audiences into one undivided crowd, since a single post can simultaneously reach parents, employers, and casual acquaintances. Consequently, users often struggle to decide which version of themselves to present, knowing that a joke suitable for close friends might seem ③professional to a supervisor. This tension forces many users to either ④self-censor heavily or maintain multiple separate accounts tailored to different audiences. Understanding context collapse helps explain why online communication often feels more ⑤complicated.

Minji had tried for years to build a bedtime reading habit but always ①forgot once under the blanket. During summer, she found a method called habit stacking. It means attaching a new habit to an existing one so it acts as a reminder. Her existing habit was brushing her teeth every night, so she decided to place her book ②far from her toothbrush. After brushing her teeth, she would pick up the book, letting one action trigger the next. Within two weeks, opening the book after brushing felt almost ③automatic, requiring no conscious effort. She realized habit stacking worked best when the new habit was ④small and the existing habit was stable and predictable. By the end of summer, both habits felt like ⑤steady parts of her routine, requiring no reminders.

The twenty-hour rule proposes that years of practice are not needed to become skilled at a new activity. Only about twenty hours of effort are needed to reach a useful level. Unlike theories claiming true mastery requires ten thousand hours, this rule targets a more modest goal. That goal is simple competence for everyday use. According to supporters, ___________, since a beginner has room to grow. Someone learning guitar can typically strum simple chords and follow a basic song within twenty hours of daily practice. Likewise, a language learner may soon order food or ask directions without years of formal study. Advocates emphasize that the twenty hours must be deliberate and focused, broken into short daily sessions rather than one long stretch. The hours should be aimed at fixing weaknesses rather than repeating what one already knows.

Understanding the perfectionism-procrastination cycle can help students break free from a frustrating pattern of delay. (A) This fear does not mean perfectionists lack motivation; rather, it pushes them to delay the task in order to avoid confronting their own high standards. (B) As a result, many perfectionists end up completing work at the last possible moment, which paradoxically increases the likelihood of the very mistakes they feared. (C) When someone holds unrealistic expectations for a task, the fear of falling short often becomes so intense that starting the task itself feels dangerous.

Job seekers often assume that their closest friends will be the most helpful source of career advice. (A) In fact, studies show that a surprising number of job offers come through acquaintances met only briefly at conferences or previous workplaces. (B) However, close friends usually work in the same field or social circle, so their knowledge of new openings tends to overlap with what the job seeker already knows. (C) This is because such acquaintances belong to different professional circles, giving them access to information that never reaches close friends.

Not all environmental changes happen at the same steady pace. (A) A well-known example involves melting Arctic ice, which exposes darker ocean water that absorbs more sunlight and speeds up further melting in a self-reinforcing cycle. (B) Once this kind of threshold is crossed, reversing the damage becomes extremely difficult, which is why scientists consider identifying these points an urgent priority. (C) Some changes accumulate slowly and predictably, while others can suddenly accelerate once a critical threshold, known as a tipping point, is crossed.

Time perception can also shift according to age, not only according to attention or emotion. (A) This may occur because each year represents a smaller fraction of a person's total life as they grow older. (B) Many older adults report that entire years seem to pass more quickly than they did during childhood. (C) Psychologists studying this phenomenon have proposed that our sense of time speed is partly relative rather than fixed.