EigoPro 準2級プラス 読解 — Why We Cannot Live Without Sleep

Why We Cannot Live Without Sleep We spend about a third of our lives asleep. For a long time, scientists were not sure why. After all, sleeping leaves us unaware of danger, so there must be a powerful reason why animals and humans evolved to do it. Modern research is finally revealing just how important sleep really is. Cleaning the Brain One of the most surprising discoveries is that the brain cleans itself during sleep. While we rest, the brain washes away waste products that build up during the day. Scientists believe this nightly cleaning may help protect us from certain brain diseases later in life. In other words, a good night's sleep is not lazy — it is essential maintenance. Memory and Learning Sleep also plays a key role in learning. When we study something new, our brains store the information more firmly while we sleep. This is why students who get enough rest before a test often perform better than those who stay up all night studying. Pulling an "all-nighter," it turns out, can actually do more harm than good. The Modern Problem Despite all this, many people today sleep less than they should. Bright screens, busy schedules, and the pressure to do more have pushed sleep down the list of priorities. Some people even treat tiredness as a sign of hard work, as if sleeping less makes them more successful. Changing Our Habits Experts say it is time to change this thinking. They recommend keeping a regular sleep schedule, avoiding screens before bed, and treating sleep as seriously as diet and exercise. As one sleep scientist warned, "You can survive for weeks without food, but only days without sleep. That should tell us something."

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この単元の問題を3問、解説つきで公開しています

準2級プラス · 読解 · 全5問

問 1

Why did scientists think there must be a powerful reason for sleep?

  • Because sleeping leaves animals and humans unaware of danger.
  • Because only humans need to sleep.
  • Because sleep wastes a third of every day.
  • Because sleep makes people forget everything.
Phrase

sleeping leaves us unaware of danger

睡眠中は危険に気づけない

準2級プラス読解科学記事睡眠に理由がある根拠
⚡ひとことで

「Because sleeping leaves animals and humans unaware of danger.」を表す読解フレーズ。睡眠に強い理由があるはずの論理の文脈で頻出。

選択肢の解説Choice Analysis

「Because sleeping leaves animals and humans unaware of danger.」

正解

本文 "sleeping leaves us unaware of danger, so there must be a powerful reason why animals and humans evolved to do it" より、根拠 = 睡眠中は危険に気づけないのに進化したから、強い理由があるはず。leave + O + 形容詞 = 「Oを〜の状態にする」、there must be ~ = 「〜があるに違いない」。

  • 「Because sleep wastes about a third of every single day.」

    = 1日の3分の1を無駄にする ━ 無駄ではなく重要 ━ 本文の主旨と逆。

  • 「Because only human beings ever really need to sleep.」

    = 人間だけが睡眠を要する ━ "animals and humans" ━ 動物も。

  • 「Because sleep makes people forget almost everything.」

    = 睡眠で全て忘れる ━ むしろ記憶を固める ━ 逆。

▦Collocation
パターン意味例
leave + O + 形容詞Oを〜の状態にするleaves us unaware of danger
there must be ~〜があるに違いないthere must be a powerful reason
evolve to + 動詞〜するよう進化するevolved to do it
unaware of ~〜に気づかないunaware of danger
a third of ~〜の3分の1a third of our lives
❝例文

  • Sleeping leaves us unaware of danger.

    睡眠中は危険に気づけない。

  • So there must be a powerful reason for it.

    だから強い理由があるはず。

  • We spend a third of our lives asleep.

    人生の3分の1を眠って過ごす。

💡Tip · 覚えるコツ

論理設問の鉄則 ―― "X leaves us unaware of danger, so there must be a powerful reason" の so でつながる推論 を追う。leave + O + 形容詞、there must be ~ = 「〜があるはず」(強い推量) は準2級プラス必須。誤答は『無駄』など本文の主旨と逆で誘導。

問 2

What surprising discovery about the brain is mentioned?

  • The brain washes away waste products during sleep.
  • The brain creates new waste while we sleep.
  • The brain stops working completely during sleep.
  • The brain grows larger every night.
Phrase

brain washes away waste

脳が老廃物を洗い流す

準2級プラス読解科学記事驚きの発見
⚡ひとことで

「The brain washes away waste products during sleep.」を表す読解フレーズ。睡眠中の脳の働きの文脈で頻出。

選択肢の解説Choice Analysis

「The brain washes away waste products during sleep.」

正解

Cleaning the Brain "the brain cleans itself during sleep. While we rest, the brain washes away waste products that build up during the day" より、発見 = 睡眠中に脳が日中溜まった老廃物を洗い流す。wash away ~ = 「〜を洗い流す」、build up = 「溜まる」。

  • 「The brain stops working completely during sleep.」

    = 睡眠中は脳が完全停止 ━ 掃除している ━ 停止ではない。

  • 「The brain grows larger every night.」

    = 毎晩大きくなる ━ 成長の記述無し。

  • 「The brain creates new waste while we sleep.」

    = 睡眠中に老廃物を作る ━ 洗い流す ━ 作るとは逆。

▦Collocation
パターン意味例
wash away ~〜を洗い流すwashes away waste products
build up溜まるwaste products that build up
clean itself自らを清めるthe brain cleans itself
protect ~ from ...〜を…から守るprotect us from brain diseases
essential maintenance不可欠な手入れessential maintenance
❝例文

  • The brain washes away waste during sleep.

    脳は睡眠中に老廃物を洗い流す。

  • Waste builds up during the day.

    老廃物は日中に溜まる。

  • A good sleep is essential maintenance.

    良い睡眠は不可欠な手入れ。

💡Tip · 覚えるコツ

発見設問の鉄則 ―― "One of the most surprising discoveries is that ..." の that 節が発見。wash away ~ = 「洗い流す」、build up = 「蓄積する」は準2級プラス必須。誤答は『脳が停止』『老廃物を作る』など本文と逆で誘導。

問 3

How does sleep help with learning?

  • It makes studying completely unnecessary.
  • The brain stores new information more firmly while we sleep.
  • It only helps if you stay up all night.
  • It deletes everything learned that day.
Phrase

store information more firmly

情報をより確実に保存

準2級プラス読解科学記事学習との関係
⚡ひとことで

「The brain stores new information more firmly while we sleep.」を表す読解フレーズ。睡眠と記憶の文脈で頻出。

選択肢の解説Choice Analysis

「The brain stores new information more firmly while we sleep.」

正解

Memory and Learning "When we study something new, our brains store the information more firmly while we sleep" より、学習との関係 = 睡眠中に新情報をより確実に保存する。store ~ firmly = 「〜を確実に保存」、while we sleep = 「眠っている間」。"all-nighter does more harm than good" が補強。

  • 「It deletes everything that was learned during the day.」

    = その日学んだことを消す ━ 保存する ━ 削除とは逆。

  • 「It makes any kind of studying completely unnecessary.」

    = 勉強を全く不要にする ━ 勉強+睡眠の両方が必要。

  • 「It only helps if you stay awake for the whole night.」

    = 徹夜の時だけ役立つ ━ "all-nighter does more harm" ━ 徹夜は逆効果。

▦Collocation
パターン意味例
store information情報を保存するstore the information
more firmlyより確実にmore firmly
while we sleep眠っている間while we sleep
perform better than ~〜より良い成績perform better than those who stay up
do more harm than good益より害が多いdo more harm than good
❝例文

  • Sleep helps store information more firmly.

    睡眠は情報をより確実に保存する。

  • Rested students perform better on tests.

    休んだ学生はテストでより良い。

  • An all

    nighter does more harm than good. — 徹夜は益より害が多い。

💡Tip · 覚えるコツ

関係設問の鉄則 ―― "Sleep plays a key role in learning ... store the information more firmly while we sleep" が核。do more harm than good = 「益より害」(慣用) は準2級プラス必須。誤答は『削除する』『徹夜が役立つ』など本文と逆で誘導。

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