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I'm usually fairly doubtful about any research that concludes that people are either happier or unhappier or more or less certain of themselves than they were 50 years ago. While any of these statements might be true, they are practically impossible to prove scientifically. Still, I was struck by a report which concluded that today's children are significantly more anxious than children in the 1950s. In fact, the analysis showed, normal children aged 9 to 17 exhibit a higher level of anxiety today than children who were treated for mental illness 50 years ago.
Why are America's kids so stressed? According to the report there are two main causes: increasing loneliness ─ brought on by high divorce rates and little communication with society, among other things ─ and a growing perception that the world is a more dangerous place.
Given that we can't turn the clock back, adults can still do plenty to help the next generation handle such difficulties. At the top of the list is giving children a better appreciation of the limits of individualism (个人主义). No child is an island. Strengthening social ties helps protect individuals against stress. To help kids build stronger connections with others, you can pull the plug on TVs and computers. Your family will thank you later. They will have more time for face-to-face relationships, and they will get more sleep.
Limit the amount of virtual violence your children are exposed to. It's not just video games and movies; children see a lot of murder and crime on the local news. Keep your expectations for your children reasonable. Many highly successful people never attended Harvard or Yale. Make exercise part of your daily routine. It will help you deal with your own anxieties and provide a good model for your kids. Sometimes anxiety is unavoidable. But it doesn't have to ruin your life.
1. The author thinks that the conclusions of any research comparing people's state of mind today with people’s state of mind in the past are______.
A. surprising B. confusing C. interesting D. questionable
2. What does the author mean when he says, “we can't turn the clock back” (Paragraph 3)?
A. It's impossible to slow down the pace of change.
B. The social reality children are facing cannot be changed.
C. Lessons learned from the past should not be forgotten.
D. It's impossible to forget the past.
3. According to the analysis, compared with normal children today, children treated as mentally ill 50 years ago____.
A. had little communication with friends
B. were probably less self-centered
C. probably suffered less from anxiety
D. were considered less individualistic
4. The first and most important thing parents should do to help their children is ____.
A. to provide the children with a safer environment
B. to lower their expectations for the children
C. to get the children more active socially
D. to set an example for the children to follow
5. What conclusion can be drawn from the passage?
A. Anxiety, though unavoidable, can be dealt with.
B. Children's anxiety has been taken too seriously.
C. Children's anxiety can disappear with more parental care.
D. Anxiety, if properly controlled, may help children become mature.
Dogs wag(摇摆) their tails in different directions depending on whether they are excited and wanting to move forward or threatened and thinking of moving back, a study has found.
Researchers in Italy examined the tail wagging behaviour of 30 dogs, catching their responses to a range of stimuli(刺激物) with video cameras. To conduct the study they chose 15 male dogs and 15 female ones aged between one and six years. The dogs were all family pets whose owners had allowed them to take part in the experiment at Bari University. The dogs were placed in a large wooden box with an opening at the front to allow for them to view various stimuli. They were tested one at a time.
The researchers led by Professor Giorgio Vallortigara of the University of Trieste found that when the dogs were shown their owners—a positive experience—their tails wagged energetically to the right side. When they were shown an unfamiliar human they wagged to the right, but with somewhat less enthusiasm. The appearance of a cat again caused a right-hand side wag, although with less intensity again. The appearance of a large unfamiliar dog, similar to a German shepherd, changed the direction of tail wagging to the left. Researchers supposed the dog was thinking of moving back. When the dogs were not shown any stimuli they tended to wag their tails to the left, suggesting they preferred company. While the changes in the tail wagging were not easily noticed without the aid of video, it was thought that the findings could help people judge the mood (心情) of dogs. Computer and video systems, for example, could be used by professional dog trainers to determine the mood of dogs that they were required to approach.
71.The video cameras were used to catch the dogs’ responses because .
A.it was easier to catch the dogs’ response changes in the tail wagging
B.the dogs were put in the wooden boxes and tested one at a time.
C.they enabled the dogs’ owners to know about their dogs’ habit
D.the dogs wagged their tails in different directions when they were in different moods
72.The underlined word “intensity” in the passage means .
A.surprise B.worry C.excitement D.interest
73.When there are no stimuli, a dog will .
A.wag to the left B.wag to the right
C.not wag at all D.wag to the left and then to the right
74.The underlined word “they” refers to .
A.the dogs B.the trainers C.the systems D.the researchers
75.The purpose of doing the experiment is .
A.to train dogs for their owners B.to help people judge the mood of dogs
C.to help dogs find company D.to help people choose their pet dogs
Scientists have found what look like caves on Mars(火星), and say they could be protecting life from the planet’s terrible environment.
The first caves discovered beyond the Earth appear as seven mysterious black dots on the pictures sent back by NASA’s Mars Odyssey orbiter. Each as large as a football field, they may be openings into natural caves below the Martian surface.
“If there is life on Mars, there is a good chance you’d find it in caves,” said Jut Wynne,one of the researchers who noticed the features while working on a US Geological Survey Mars Cave Detection Program.
Jonathan Clarke, a geologist with the Mars Society of Australia, yesterday described the discovery as exciting.
One photo taken at night by an infrared imager(红外线成像器) showed one hole to be unusually warm, suggesting hot air trapped during the day is flowing out.
“I said:‘Wow, that’s a cave’” Dr. Clarke said excitedly. “People have been looking for these for a long time; now we have found them.”
He agreed such caves would be perfect places to hunt for life escaping from the bitterly cold, radiation-soaked(充满辐射的), dry surface.
“Tiny drops of water could collect inside,” he said. “If there are gases coming out, they could provide energy for a whole range of bacteria. A cave is also a protection from radiation; the surface of Mars is exposed to high levels of space radiation.”
The caves probably formed when tube-shaped lave flows(管状岩浆流) spread across the planet long ago. The outside of the tubes cooled, forming solid walls, while something hotter inside allowed the remaining have to flow out, forming caves.
64.What does the passage mainly talk about?
A. How the caves were formed on Mars.
B. How scientists found these caves on Mars.
C. Caves on Mars may be full of hot air or a sign of life.
D. Scientists have completely recognized the surface of Mars.
65.We can learn from the passage that .
A. water has already been found on Mars
B. the scientists found all the caves at night
C.it is certain that there is life in these caves
D.the surface of Mars is bitterly cold, radiation-soaked and dry
66.According to the passage, Dr. Clarke was so excited because .
A.such caves could provide energy for life
B.they had finally found the caves on Mars
C.such caves would be perfect places to hunt for life
D.scientists had long been looking for these caves
67.Necessary conditions for life on Mars mentioned in the passage may include .
A.lava and energy B.water and radiation from space
C.gases and lava D.water and protection from radiation
Thinking
| Some scientists claim that we humans are the only living things that are conscious(有意识的)-we alone are aware that we are thinking. No one knows how consciousness works –it is one of science’s last great mysteries. All your thoughts take place in the cerebrum(大脑皮质),which is at the top of your brain, and different kinds of thought are linked to different areas, areas, called association areas. Each half of the cerebrum has four rounded ends called lobes(脑叶)-two at the front (frontal and temporal lobes)and two at the back (occipital and parietal lobes). The frontal lobe is linked to your personality and it is where you have your bright ideas. The temporal lobe is where you hear and understand what people say to you. The occipital lobe is where you work out what your eyes see. The parietal lobe is where you record touch, heat and cold, and pain. The left half of the brain controls the right side of the body. The right half controls the left side. One half of the brain is always dominant (in charge).Usually, the left brain is dominant, which is why 90% of people are right-handed. |
68.Which part of your cerebrum is most active when you are making a telephone call?
A. The frontal lobe. B. The temporal lobe. C. The occipital lobe. D. The parietal lobe.
69.Which of the following statements is true?
A. One’s personality has something to do with the frontal lobe.
B. Bright ideas come from the parietal lobe.
C. The occipital and temperal lobes are at the back of the cerebrum.
D. The occipital lobe is in charge of sound.
70.From the passage, we know the reason why around 10% of people are left-handed is that _______.
A.their frontal lobe is usually dominant B.their temporal lobe is usually dominant
C.their right brain is usually dominant D.their left brain is usually dominant
What will people die of 100 years from now? If you think that is a simple question, you have not been paying attention to the revolution that is taking place in bio-technology(生物技术). With the help of new medicine, the human body will last a very long time. Death will come mainly from accidents, murder and war. Today's leading killers, such as heart diseases, cancer, and aging itself, will become distant memory.
In discussion of technological changes, the Internet gets most of the attention these days. But the change in medicine can be the real technological event of our times. How long can humans live? Human brains were known to decide the final death. Cells(细胞) are the basic units of all living things, and until recently, scientists were sure that the life of cells could not go much beyond 120 years because the basic materials of cells, such as those of brain cells, would not last forever. But the upper limits will be broken by new medicine. Sometime between 2050 and 2100, medicine will have advanced to the point at which every 10 years or so, people will be able to take medicine to repair their organs(器官). The medicine, made up of the basic building materials of life, will build new brain cells, heart cells, and so on---in much the same way our bodies make new skin cells to take the place of old ones.
It is exciting to imagine that the advance in technology may be changing the most basic conditional human existence, but many technical problems still must be cleared up on the way to this wonderful future.
56. According to the passage, human death is now mainly caused by _______.
A. diseases and aging B. accidents and war
C. accidents and agingD. heart diseases and war
57.In the author's opinon, today's most important advance in technology lies in _____.
A. medicineB. the internetC. brain cellsD. human organs
58. Humans may live longer in the future because ______.
A. heart disease will be far away from us B. human brains can decide the final death
C. the basic materials of cells will last forever D. human organs can be repaired by new medicine
59. We can learn from the passage that _____.
A. human life will not last more than 120 years in the future
B. human have to take medicine to build new skin cells now
C. much needs to be done before humans can have a longer life
D. we have already solved the technical problems in building new cells.
When we think of leadership, we often think of strength and power. But what are these really, and how do they operate?
Leadership today is not about forcing others to do things, If this is even possible. it is short-term , and tends to backfire. If you order someone to do something against their will. they may do it because they feel they must , but the anger they feel will do more harm in the long-term , They will also experience fear.
Fear causes the thinking brain to shut down, making the person unable to function at his or her best . If they associate you with this emotion of fear. They will become less functional around you , and you will have succeeded in not only shooting yourself in the foot . but possibly making a very good employee or partner unable to perform effectively . Fear has no place in leadership.
The way we influence people in a lasting way is by our own character, and our understanding and use of emotion. We can order someone to do something , which may be part of the work day; or we can employ them at the emotional level , so they became fully devoted to the projects and provide some of their own motivation(积极性)。Today’s work place is all about relationships as a human being as well as a worker. Everyone produces just a bit more for someone they like. Leaders understand the way things work. They know the pay check is not the single most motivating factor (因素) in the work life of most people.
The true strength of leadership is an inner strength that comes from the confidence of emotional intelligence---knowing your own emotions, and how to handle them, and those of others . Developing your emotional intelligence is the single best thing you can do if you want to develop your relationships with people around you, which is the key to the leadership skills .
52. An employee may have a feeling of fear in the work place when___.
A. he is forced to do things B. be cannot work at his best
C. . he feels his brain shut down D. he thinks of his work as too heavy
53. Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
A. People tend to associate leadership with fear
B. Working conditions affect people’s physical health
C. Good relationship is the key to business success
D. Smart people are more functional in the work place.
54. To positively influence employees a leader should first of all __
A. provide better suggestions B. develop his own personality
C. five his employees a pay raise D. hide his own emotion of fear
55.Good leadership is mainly seen in a leader’s ability to___
A . provide a variety of project for employees B. help raise employee’s living standards
C. give employees specific instructions D. deal wisely with employees’ emotions