B
There is an English saying :“laughter is best medicine .”Until recently ,few people took the saying seriously .Now however ,doctors have begun to look into laughter and the effects it has on the human body .They have found that laughter really can improve people’s health .
Tests were carried out to study the effects of laughter on the body .People watched funny films while doctors checked their hearts ,blood pressure ,breathing and muscles .It was found that laughter had similar effects to physical exercise .It increases blood pressure ,the heart beating and breathing ; it also works several groups of muscles in the face ,the stomach ,and even the feet .If laughter exercises the body ,it must be beneficial .
Other tests have shown that laughter appears to be able to reduce the effect of pain on the body .In one experiment doctors produced pain in groups of students who listened to different radio programmes .The group that tolerated(忍耐)the pain for the longest time was the groups which listened to a funny programme .The reason why laughter can reduce pain seems to be that it helps to produce a kind of chemicals in the brain which diminish both stress and pain .
As a result of these discoveries ,some doctors in the United States now hold laughter clinics ,in which they help to improve their patients’ condition by encouraging them to laugh .They have found that even if their patients do not really feel like laughing ,making them smile is enough to produce beneficial effects similar to those caused by laughter .
61.Doctors have proved the following EXCEPT that .
A.smiling does good to health B.laughter can be tolerated
C.there is a way to reduce pain D.laughter can work the muscles in the feet
62.The main idea of the passage is .
A.laughter and physical exercise have similar effects on the human body
B.smile can produce the same effects as laughter
C.pain can be reduced by laughter
D.laughter is the best medicine
63.The students who________tolerated the pain for the longest time .
A. listened to different radio programmes
B. could produce a kind of chemical
C. don’t have stress of pain
D. listened to a funny programme
64.The underlined word “diminish” is similar to .
A. test B. stop C. reduce D. increase
65.Doctors hold laughter clinics _________.
A. to give better condition to their patients
B.in order to improve patients’ health
C.to make patients smile
D.to prove smile and laughter have the same effect
Ask someone what they have done to help the environment recently and they will almost certainly mention recycling. Recycling in the home is very important of course. However, being forced to recycle often means we already have more material than we need. We are dealing with the results of that over-consumption in the greenest way possible, but it would be far better if we did not need to bring so much material home in the first place. The total amount of packaging increased by 12% between 1999 and 2005. It now makes up a third of a typical household’s waste in the UK. In many supermarkets nowadays food items are packaged twice with plastic and cardboard. Too much packaging is doing serious damage to the environment. The UK, for example, is running out of it for carrying this unnecessary waste. If such packaging is burnt, it gives off greenhouse gases which go on to cause the greenhouse effect. Recycling helps, but the process itself uses energy. The solution is not to produce such items in the first place. Food waste is a serious problem, too. Too many supermarkets encourage customers to buy more than they need. However, a few of them are coming round to the idea that this cannot continue, encouraging customers to reuse their plastic bags, for example. But this is not just about supermarkets. It is about all of us. We have learned to associate packaging with quality. We have learned to think that something unpackaged is of poor quality. This is especially true of food. But is also applies to a wide range of consumer products, which often have far more packaging than necessary.
There are signs of hope. As more of us recycle, we are beginning to realize just how much unnecessary material are collecting. We need to face the wastefulness of our consumer culture, but we have a mountain to climb.What does the underlined phrase “over-consumption” refer to?
A.Using too much packaging. |
B.Recycling too many wastes. |
C.Making more products than necessary. |
D.Having more material than is needed. |
The author uses figures in Paragraph 2 to show _______.
A.the tendency of cutting household waste |
B.the increase of packaging recycling |
C.the rapid growth of super markets |
D.the fact of packaging overuse |
According to the text, recycling ______.
A.helps control the greenhouse effect |
B.means burning packaging for energy |
C.is the solution to gas shortage |
D.leads to a waste of land |
What can be inferred from Paragraph 4?
A.Unpackaged products are of bad quality. |
B.Supermarkets care more about packaging. |
C.It is improper to judge quality by packaging. |
D.Other products are better packaged than food. |
What can we learn from the last paragraph?
A.Fighting wastefulness is difficult. |
B.Needless material is mostly recycled. |
C.People like collecting recyclable waste. |
D.The author is proud of their consumer culture. |
Christopher Thomas, 27, was a writer by night and a teacher by day when he noticed he was always tired and was losing weight fast. Diagnosed with diabetes(糖尿病), Thomas would need to inject himself with insulin(胰岛素) three times a day for the rest of his life or risk nerve damage, blindness, and even death. And if that weren't bad enough, he had no health insurance. After a month of feeling upset, Thomas decided he'd better find a way to fight back. He left Canton, Michigan for New York, got a job waiting tables, nicknamed himself the Diabetic Rockstar , and created diabeticrockstar.com, a free online community for diabetics and their loved ones—a place where over 1,100 people share personal stories, information, and resources.
Jason Swencki‟s son, Kody, was diagnosed with type diabetes at six. Father and son visit the online children's forums(论坛) together most evenings. "Kody gets so excited, writing to kids from all over," says Swencki, one of the site's volunteers. "They know what he's going through, so he doesn't feel alone." Kody is anything but alone: Diabetes is now the seventh leading cause of death in the United States, with 24 million diagnosed cases. And more people are being diagnosed at younger ages.
These days, Thomas's main focus is his charity慈善机构, Fight It, which provides medicines and supplies to people—225 to date—who can't afford a diabetic's huge expenses. Fight-it.org has raised about $23,000—in products and in cash. In May, Thomas will hold the first annual Diabetic Rockstar Festival in the Caribbean.
Even with a staff of 22 volunteers, Thomas often devotes up to 50 hours a week to his cause, while still doing his full-time job waiting tables. "Of the diabetes charities out there, most are putting money into finding a cure," says Bentley Gubar one of Rockstar's original members. "But Christopher is the only person I know saying people need help now." Which of the following is true of Christopher Thomas?
A.He needs to go to the doctor every day. |
B.He studies the leading cause of diabetes |
C.He has a positive attitude to this disease. |
D.He encourages diabetics by writing articles. |
Diabeitcrockstar.com was created for _________.
A.diabetics to communicate | B.volunteers to find jobs |
C.children to amuse themselves | D.rock stars to share resources. |
According to the text, Kody ______.
A.feel lonely because of his illness |
B.benefits from diabeticrockstar.com |
C.helps create the online kid’s forums |
D.writes children’s stories online |
What can we learn about Fight It?
A.It helps the diabetics in financial difficulties. |
B.It organizes parties for volunteer once a year. |
C.It offers less expensive medicine to diabetics. |
D.It owns a well-known medical website. |
The last paragraph suggests that Thomas ______.
A.works full-time in a diabetes charity |
B.employs 22 people for his website |
C.helps diabetics in his own way |
D.ties to find a cure for diabetes |
I have a friend who lives by a three-word philosophy: Seize the moment. Just possibly, she may be the wisest woman on this planet. Too many people put off something that brings them joy just because they haven't thought about it, don't have it on their schedule, didn't know it was coming or are too strict to depart from their routine.
I can't count the times I called my sister and said,“How about going to lunch in half an hour?” She would gasp and stammer(结结巴巴地说), “I can't. I have clothes on the line. My hair is dirty. I wish I had known yesterday. I had a late breakfast. It looks like rain.”And my personal favorite response:“It's just Monday.”She died a few years ago. We never did have lunch together. From then on, I've tried to be a little more flexible.
Life has a way of going faster as we get older. The days get shorter, and the list of promises made to ourselves gets longer. One morning, we awaken, and all have to show for our lives is repetition of “I'm going to”,“I plan on” and “Someday, when things are settled down a bit.”
When anyone calls my“seize the moment” friend, she is open to adventure and available for trips. She keeps an open mind on new mind on new ideas. Her enthusiasm for life is contagious. You talk with her for five minutes, and you're ready to trade your bad feet for a pair of Rollerblades and skip an elevator for a bungee cord.
My lips have not touched ice cream in 10 years. I love ice cream. The other day, I stopped the car and bought a triple-decker. If my car had hit an iceberg on the way home, I would have died happy.
Now go on and have a nice day. Do something you WANT to, not something on your SHOULD DO list.The example of the writer's sister serves as__________.
A.an argument | B.an introduction | C.a support | D.a conclusion |
The writer thinks that the underlined excuse “It's just Monday.”is acceptable, because __________.
A.it is still likely that they can have lunch together some time later |
B.it sounds most reasonable of all the excuses. |
C.it shows respect for the writer's suggestion |
D.it indicates the time when they can have lunch together |
The underlined word “contagious” in the fourth paragraph means “_________”.
A.appropriate | B.influential | C.practical | D.evident |
What is the purpose of the writer by writing this passage?
A.To suggest how time flies. |
B.To persuade busy people to relax. |
C.To advise people to keep their promise. |
D.To convince readers to be flexible on their schedule for practical joy. |
Every spring scores of people flock to the Buzzard Festival at Hinckley, Ohio. They come to watch for buzzards. Most would be glad just to take a look at a buzzard. If they do see one of these" flying garbage cans", it will probably be circling high in the sky. From there it can watch the ground for signs of the waste and the dead animals on which it feeds.
The buzzard is the ugliest bird in the United States. In fact, it may well be the ugliest bird in the world. It has a small, bare, pink head. Its thick body is covered with dark, rough feathers.
In spite of its looks, the buzzard is important to the people of Hinckley. It is their first sign of spring. After a winter in the south, buzzards return to their homes in the north. In the Hinckley area, they always return on March 15. No one knows why. But they have come back to Hinckley Ridge on that day, sure as clocks work, for at least forty years.
The excitement starts in February. By the middle of March it has reached a high peak. Bets are placed. Prizes go to the person who sees the first buzzard. Radio stations and newspapers tell of the coming festival. And on the weekend after March 15 the people of Hinckley hold their Buzzard Festival.
The people come and look around. They chat. They eat their fill of pancakes and sausages. Then they drive past Buzzard's Roost on Hinckley Ridge.
A lot of them stop near the road at the stand set up to give information to visitors. There they can hear, from a recording, the main facts about the buzzard. They can see a stuffed buzzard. They can look at some pictures taken of buzzards in other years. With good luck and a strong pair of field glasses, they may sight one or two live buzzards high in the sky.
Buzzards may be ugly. They may be "flying garbage cans". But in Hinckley they are just as welcome as the swallows in Capistrano, California. It would be a sad spring indeed if the buzzards ever failed to come back to Hinckley Ridge. A good title for this story would be __________.
A.The Hinckley Buzzard Festival |
B.Buzzard, the Ugliest Bird |
C.Why the Buzzard Has a Pink Head |
D.The Return of“The Garbage Can" |
The buzzard is called the "flying garbage can" because it __________.
A.is ugly | B.eats waste and dead animals |
C.looks like a garbage can | D.collect rubbish on the ground |
The surprising thing about Hinckley's buzzards is that_.
A.they spend the winter in the south |
B.they come very close to the town |
C.they return on the same day each year |
D.both buzzards and swallows return to Capistrano on March 15 |
At the information stand, visitors to Hinckley's Buzzard Festival can _________.
A.learn some facts about the buzzard |
B.easily see a live buzzard |
C.take some pictures with the background of live buzzards |
D.feed their fill of pancakes and sausages to buzzards |
The new mayor of Hillsdale, Michigan, is a man of the people, ready to listen to their problems, but only until 6 p.m. Then he has to do his homework. Michael Sessions, 18, beat former mayor Douglas Ingles, 51, by just two votes and became the new mayor of Hillsdale. He is America's youngest mayor.
As Sessions was too young to enter the election in the spring of 2005, he registered- to vote on Sept. 22, one day after his 18-year-old birthday. The day after that he started his write-in campaign, which means he should persuade voters to remember his name and write it by hand on the voting ballots(选票).
To help get his name known, Sessions earned$700 by selling apples over the summer. He spent the money on posters and put them on the Hillsdale's lawns.
Sessions' month-long campaign included going door to door, explaining his ideas of the town's future in the kitchens of his neighbors. "They'd look at me, and say‘How old are you again? How much experience do you have?'And I say‘I'm still in high school', "he said. Sessions promised Hillsdale's voters he would renew local economy. “I was hopeful the whole time, ”he explained. One day he spent so long out on the streets knocking on the doors that he ended up in a hospital emergency room.
Sessions said that his schoolwork will not get in the way of his job as a mayor. “From 7:50 a.m. to 2:30p.m., I'11 be a student. From 3 to 6, I'11 be the mayor of Hillsdale," he said.
“He did a very brave thing that couldn't have been easy for him to do, "said Jack Vettel, a councilman in Hillsdale, a city of 8,200 about 75 miles southwest of Detroit. "He does care about this town. He's been here all his life. ”
Sessions will receive$3, 600 a year during his four-year term, and will work out of his bedroom since the town does not provide the mayor with an office. What is TRUE of Sessions' election campaign according to the text?
A.Sessions launched his election campaign on Sept. 22. |
B.Sessions worked so hard that he once tried to persuade people in a hospital. |
C.Sessions won the election campaign by a very close outcome. |
D.Sessions felt disappointed when asked about his age and experience. |
In order to gain more support from the voters Sessions had to do all these things EXCEPT_.
A.put up posters' | B.renew the economy |
C.sell apples | D.talk to neighbors in kitchens |
What can we infer from the passage?
A.American mayors usually work from 3 p. m. to 6 p. m. |
B.In America, young people are encouraged to get involved in politics. |
C.All teenagers are allowed to enter political elections. |
D.American mayors receive a salary of 3, 600 a year during their 4-year term. |
Which of the following would best summarize the text?
A.Schoolboy becomes American's youngest mayor. |
B.How to become a teenage mayor. |
C.Hard work is the ticket to success. |
D.Never too young to shake the world. |