In real life, the daily struggles between parents and children are around these narrow problems of an extra hour, extra TV show, and so on” said Avi Sadeh, psychology professor at Tel Aviv University. “Too little sleep and more accidents,” he said.
Sadeh and his colleagues found an extra hour of sleep can make a big difference. The children who slept longer, although they woke up more frequently during the night, scored higher on tests, Sadeh reported in the March/April issue of journal Child Development.
“When the children slept longer, their sleep quality was somewhat weak, but in spite of this their performance for study improved because the extra sleep was more significant than the reduction in sleep quality. ” Sadeh said. “Some studies suggested that lack of sleep as a child affects development into adulthood and it’s more likely to develop their attention disorder when they grow older. ”
In earlier studies, Sadeh’s team found that fourth graders slept an average of 8. 2 hours and sixth graders slept an average of 7. 7 hours.
“Previous research has shown children in elementary school need at least nine hours of sleep a night on a regular basis, said Carl Hunt, director of the National Center on Sleep Disorders Research in Bethesda, and high-school-age children need somewhat less, he said, adding the results of insufficient sleep could be serious.
“A tired child is an accident waiting to happen,” Hunt said. “And as kids get older, toys get bigger and the risks higher. ”Hunt also said too little sleep could result in learning and memory problems and long-term effects on school performance.
“This is an important extension of what we already know, ” Hunt said of Sadeh’s research, adding sleep is as important as nutrition(营养) and exercise to good health.
“To put it into reality,” Hunt said, “parents should make sure they know when their children actually are going to sleep and their rooms are conducive to sleeping instead of playing. ”What is Child Development?
A A new story B A popular book
C. A periodical magazine D A TV programmeHow many persons are exactly mentioned in the text?
A One B Two C Three D FourThe underlined phrase “conducive to” (in the last sentence) means ________.
A helping to happen B influenced by
C full of D acceptable ofWhich of the following statements is NOT true according to the passage?
| A．There are some daily struggles between parents and children because of having nothing in common with extra rest time. |
| B．The children who sleep longer are weak in their study. |
| C．Lack of sleep as a child has great effect on their development into adulthood. |
| D．In general, children in elementary school need at least nine hours of sleep a night. |
Researchers found that people become happier and experience less worry after they reach the age of fifty. In fact, they say by the age of eighty-five, people are 
happier with their life than they were when they were eighteen years old.
The findings came from a survey of more than 340,000 adults in the United States. The Gallup(民意调查) Organization questioned them by telephone in 2008. At that time, the people were between the ages of eighteen and eighty-five.
The researchers asked questions about emotions like happiness, sadness and worry. They also asked about mental or emotional stress.
Arthur Stone at Stony Brook University in New York led the study. His team found that levels of stress were highest among adults between the ages of twenty-two and twenty-five. The findings showed that stress levels dropped sharply after people reached their fifties. Happiness was highest among the youngest adults and those in their early seventies. The people least likely to report feeling negative emotions were those in their seventies and eighties.
Researchers say they do not know why happiness increases as people get older. One theory is that, as people grow older, they grow more thankful for what they have and have better control of their emotions. They also spend less time thinking about bad experiences.
Professor Stone says the emotional patterns could be linked to changes in how people see the world, or maybe even changes in brain chemistry.
The researchers also considered possible influences like having young 
children, being unemployed or being single. But they found that influences like these did not affect the levels of happiness and well-being related to age.
The study also showed that men and women have similar emotional patterns as they grow older. However, women at all age
s reported more sadness, stress and worry than men. What can be the best title of the text?
| A．Happiness Varies with Ages |
| B．Experience More, Worry Less |
| C．The Older, the Wiser |
| D．Being Young, Being Happy |
We can learn from the research that _________.
| A．only when people get older will they feel happier |
| B．stress levels among the youngest are the highest |
| C．older people tend to be grateful |
| D．older people usually have no worries |
According to the research, when people get older, _________.
| A．they miss the old days |
| B．they are physically weak |
| C．they have better self-control |
| D．they are more emotional |
What would the author probably talk about next?
| A．What influences happiness. |
| B．How to live better. |
| C．How to keep happier. |
| D．Why women are less happier. |
The author is intended to _________.
| A．advise how to reduce stress |
| B．introduce a scientific finding |
| C．describe how to do research |
| D．talk about human emotions |
To us it seems so natural to put up an umbrella to keep the water off when it rains, But actually the umbrella was not invented as protection against the rain, Its first use was as a shade against the sun!
Nobody knows who first invented it, but the umbrella was used in very ancient times . Probably the first to use it were the Chinese in the 11th century B C.
We know that the umbrella was used in ancient Egypt and Babylon as a sunshade. And there was a strange thing connected with its use: it became a symbol of honor. In the Far East in ancient times, the umbrella was allowed to be used only by those in high office.
In Europe, the Greeks were the first to use the umbrella as a sunshade. And the umbrella was in commonly used in ancient Greece. But it is believed that the first persons in Europe to use the umbrella as protection against the rain were the ancient Romans.
During the Middle Ages, the use of the umbrella practically disappeared. Then it appeared again in Italy in the late sixteenth century. And again it was considered as a symbol of power. By 1680, the umbrella appeared in France and later in England.
By the eighteenth century, the umbrella was used against rain throughout most of Europe.
Umbrellas have hot changed much in style during all this time, though they have become much lighter in weight. It wasn’t until the twentieth century that women’s umbrellas began to be made , in a whole variety of colors.According to this
passage, the umbrella was probably first invented in ancient_______.
| A．China | B．Egypt | C．Greece | D．Rome |
Which of the following statements is not true about the umbrella?
| A．No one exactly knows who the inventor of the umbrella was |
| B．The umbrella was first invented to be used as protection against the sun. |
| C．The umbrella changed much in style in the eighteenth century |
| D．In Europe, the Greeks were the first to use the umbrella as a sunshade. |
A strange feature of the umbrella’s use is that it was used as__________.
| A．protection against rain | B．a shade against the sun |
| C．a symbol of honor and power | D．women’s decoration (装饰) |
In Europe, the umbrella was first used against the rain_______________.
| A．during the Middle Ages | B．by the 18th | C．in Rome | D．in Greece |
This passage talks mainly about_______________.
| A．when and how the umbrella was invented |
| B．why the umbrella was so popular in Europe |
| C．the development of the umbrella |
| D．The history and use of the umbrella |
Long before they became doctors, lawyers, CEO’s or real estate developers, they played in garage bands and maybe even dreamed of becoming rock stars. That’s why they signed up for Rock 'n' Roll Fantasy Camp.
For nearly a week, the mostly middle-aged “campers” had practiced in the West 54th Street studios. They came from as far away as London and Tokyo and as close as Long Island and downtown New York to prepare for their moment of onstage glory.
“I feel like I’m 18 again,” said Jerry Goldberg, a 60-year-old investment banker and guitar player, whose family was in the audience.” I admit that I felt a little uncertain when I first got here, but this has turned out to be a wonderful experience, one of the greatest of my life.”
Everybody has two businesses, their own business and show business. This can be a life-changing experience for them. Mr. Daltrey, who has appeared at several fantasy camps, was asked why he keeps coming back.
“I’ve had people tell me that I shouldn’t be doing this, that it's bad for my image,” he acknowledged. “But that’s rubbish. Look, it’s all so positive, and everybody is having so much fun. So what’s bad about that?”
Jeff Munger, a drummer and rancher(农场主) said. “I’m at a point in my life where I’m going to spend my money on things I’m passionate about, and I’m absolutely crazy about music.”
Most of the campers are successful executives or professionals: a founder of the Oracle Computer Company, a businessman whose father invented the Big Mac, a plastic surgeon, presidents of health care and seafood companies.This text is mainly about________.
| A．a music course for the elderly people |
| B．a pop club for professional musicians |
| C．a rock music camp for music lovers |
| D．a studio for wealthy businessmen |
What do the middle aged campers have in common?
| A．They are all interested in charity. |
| B．They are all passionate about music. |
| C．They are all retired business people. |
| D．They were all rock stars when they were young. |
According to the text, Mr. Daltrey ________.
| A．once played in a garage band |
| B．has come with his family |
| C．has joined in the camp a couple of times |
| D．is very careful about his image |
We can infer from the text that the campers _________.
| A．enjoy their regular jobs | B．come from different countries |
| C．do part-time jobs | D．have a great many fans |
Employees are being flooded with too much information that has little to do with their work, according to a new survey.
On average, white-collar workers spend 51 percent of their work time receiving and processing information. Only one third of it was relevant to their work, the survey found. Information overload for white collar workers has become a global issue. The huge amount of information has already affected their efficiency in management as well as their performance at work.
Buried with e-mails
Every morning, a secretary at the human resources department of an auto parts company opens her e-mail box, only to find it crammed with at least 50 unread mails. For her, even scanning through these e-mails every day takes at least half an hour. Some of her colleagues are not so lucky — they have to read at least 100.
Bothered with calls
Telephone calls are also causing a problem. More than 40 percent white-collar workers chose mobile phones as the preferred way to communicate important and urgent business matters.
Talking saves time and energy over the clicking, reading and replying to e-mails, but phone calls are also more distracting(分心的). While answering a call, a clerk is likely to put away a much more important task at hand and start the business being talked about on the phone.
Solution? Not yet.
Many companies start with providing staff with better computers, better Internet access and more advanced gadgets(装置). For example, staff members above a certain level in one company will be provided with a blackberry phone for easier access to their e-mails. The company has also organized many lectures on efficient ways of e-mail management. Yet most white-collar workers think their companies can do more.What does the new survey find about white-collar workers?
| A．They spend 51% of their work time on meetings. |
| B．Only half of the information they receive is useful. |
| C．Over 60% of them prefer to use the telephone. |
| D．Some of them have to read at least 100 e-mails every day. |
Telephone calls cause a problem because ________.
| A．they take up the time to receive and send e-mails |
| B．they are often not answered |
| C．they are mostly not about business |
| D．they may lead to the changing of work schedule |
How do some companies try to solve the problem of information overload?
| A．They start to give staff a pay rise. |
| B．They plan to employ more people. |
| C．They provide employees with more advanced equipment. |
| D．They organize lectures on how to reduce stress. |
What is the major issue discussed in this text?
| A．Poor management leads to inefficiency at work. |
| B．Junk mail is causing big trouble. |
| C．White-collar workers suffer from information overload. |
| D．Better computers are in need in workplaces. |
If teens could reduce the salt they take in every day by 3,000 milligrams (mg), they would cut their risk of heart disease and stroke(中风) greatly in adulthood, researchers say.
Based on the results of a computer modeling analysis, researchers found that a 3,000 mg reduction in sodium(钠) by teenagers could reduce hypertension by 30 percent to 43 percent when they become adults.
Hypertension, or high blood pressure, is a common condition that may have no symptoms for years, but can eventually cause serious health conditions, including heart attack and stroke.
Other benefits over time as teens hit 50 years of age include a 7-12 percent reduction in coronary heart disease(冠心病), an 8-14 percent reduction in heart attacks, and a 5-8 percent reduction in stroke.
Fast food typically contains too much sodium. One bag of Nacho Cheese Doritos has 310 milligrams. Pizza is one of the biggest problems for teens when it comes to sodium, according to data from the National Center for Health Statistics.
“The additional benefit of lower salt intake early is that we can hopefully change the expectations of how food should taste, ideally to something slightly less salty,” says Dr. Kirsten Bibbins-Domingo, the lead author of the study and associate professor of medicine at the University of California, San Francisco.
“Most of the salt we eat is not from our salt shaker(盐瓶), but salt that is already added in food that we eat.” she added.Which is a benefit of a low sodium diet according to the text?
| A．No risk of heart disease. | B．Smaller chance of stroke. |
| C．Low blood pressure. | D．Slightly more heart attacks. |
According to the text, 3,000 mg less salt intake daily will reduce hypertension by ________ in adulthood.
| A．7%-12% | B．8%-14% | C．30%-43% | D．5%-8% |
What does Dr Kirsten Bibbins-Domingo mean in the last two paragraphs?
| A．A lower sodium diet can get teenagers used to less salty food. |
| B．A good eating habit can help teens have less junk food. |
| C．Teens should avoid pizzas and other salty foods. |
| D．We can add more salt from our salt shaker to the food. |
Which of the following can be the best title for the text?
| A．Teens Cutting Salt for Healthier Adulthood |
| B．Diet and Health |
| C．Sodium Brings Health Concerns |
| D．A Cause of Hypertension |