Some people can stay up all night and still get work done the next day. I’m not one of them. After a night without enough sleep, I feel bad-tempered. I have trouble remembering things. And all I want to do is go to bed.
How do you feel after you’ve stayed up late to finish schoolwork or the day after an overnight party? Scientists now say that your answers to these questions may depend on your genes.
New research suggests that a gene called “period 3” influences how well you function without sleep. The “period 3” gene comes in two forms: short and long. Everyone has two copies of the gene. So, you may have two longs, two shorts, or one of each. Your particular combination depends on what your parents passed on to you.
Scientists from the University of Surrey in England studied 24 people who had either two short or two long copies of “period 3”. Study participants (参与者) had to stay awake for 40 hours straight. Then, they took tests that measured how quickly they pushed a button when numbers flashed (闪过) on a screen and how well they could remember lists of numbers.
Results showed that the people with the short form of “period 3” performed much better on these tests than the people with the long form did. In both groups, people performed worst in the early morning.
After the first round of experiments, participants were finally allowed to sleep. People in the group that performed well on the tests (those with the short form of “period 3”) took about 18 minutes to nod off.
While people with the long “period 3” gene fell asleep in just 8 minutes. They also spent more time on deep sleep. That suggests that people with the long form of the gene need more and deeper sleep to keep their brains working in top form.
I think I must have the long form of “period 3”. What about you?The purpose of this passage might be ___________
A. to tell us the importance of plenty of sleep. |
B. to tell the result of a research on sleepy gene. |
C. to inform the harm of lacking sleep. |
D. to announce the sleeping rules of humans. |
What kind of people need less sleep according to the research?
A. Those with two short copies of the gene. |
B.Those with two long copies of the gene. |
C.Those with one short and one long copy of the gene. |
D.Those with three short copies of the gene. |
If one lacks enough sleep, one should avoid doing impo
rtant or dangerous things ___________.
A.at noon | B.at night |
C.in the afternoon | D.at dawn |
Why did the writer think he or she had the long form of “period 3”?
A. Because the writer could remain energetic without enough sleep.![]() |
B.Because the writer could do things correctly at dawn. |
C.Because the writer needed more sleep to keep energetic. |
D.Because the writer recovered quickly after sleep. |
A Simple Lesson
“Another bad day at school?” my father asked as I came into the room.
“How could you tell? I didn't shut the door heavily or anything,” I replied. Over the past two months I had either done this or thrown my backpack across the room every time I came home from school. Papa thinks it has something to do with moving to a new house.
“I know this move has been hard on you. Leaving your friends and cousins behind is tough,” Papa said, as he put his arm around my shoulder. “What you must remember is that, with a lot of hard work and some time, you will make new friends.”
“You don't know how hard it is. This year my baseball team would have won the championship. They won't even give me a chance to pitch (投球) here. All I get to play is right field, and that's the worst!”
Papa turned toward me. “Things will get better, I promise you. Let me ask you, do you know why you were named David Lorenzo?”
“Yes, your name is David and grandfather's name is Lorenzo.”
“Very good, and what makes your grandfather so important?”
“He was the first in the family to come to this country and all that,” I answered.
“That is only partly correct. Your grandfather was a very great man. In Mexico, he had been a teacher. When he came to America he could only get lowpaid labor jobs because he didn't speak the language. It took him two years before he spoke English well enough to be allowed to teach here, but he did it. He never complained because he knew change could be difficult. Did he ever tell you that?” my father asked.
I looked down at my feet, ashamed at my behavior. “No. That must have been hard,” I said sheepishly.
“Your grandfather taught me that if you let people see your talent, they will accept you for who you are. I want you to always remember what my father taught me, even if it takes a few years for people to see who you are,” said Papa.
All I could say was, “Okay.” Then I asked, “What should I do now?”
Laughing, Papa said, “How about you pitch a few to me? You need some work.” Why was the author unhappy that day?
A.Because he moved to a new country. |
B.Because his baseball team lost the game. |
C.Because he wasn't offered a chance to pitch. |
D.Because he quarreled with his friends at school. |
The father successfully changed his son's mood by ________.
A.asking him to train harder |
B.playing baseball with him |
C.telling his grandfather's story |
D.introducing him some new friends |
The underlined word “sheepishly” probably means ________.
A.shyly | B.patiently |
C.clumsily | D.cautiously |
What can we infer about the author?
A.He thinks his father lives in the past. |
B.He'd rather live with his grandfather. |
C.He will continue to dislike school and everything. |
D.He will try his best to adapt to the new environment. |
For the first time, researchers have discovered that some plants can kill insects in order to get additional nutrients. New research shows that they catch and kill small insects with their own sticky hairs near the roots and then absorb nutrients through their roots when the insects are killed and fall to the ground.
Professor Mark Chase, of Kew and Queen Mary, University of London, said: “The cultivated (改良的) tomatoes and potatoes still have the hairs. Tomatoes in particular are covered with these sticky hairs. They do trap small insects on a regular basis. They do kill insects.”
The number of these carnivorous plants is thought to have came up to 50 percent and many of them have until now been wrongly regarded as among the most harmless plants. Among them are species of petunia(矮牵牛), some special tobacco plants and cabbages, some varieties of potatoes and tomatoes, etc. Researchers at Royal Botanical Gardens Kew, which carried out the study, now believe there are hundreds more killer plants than previously realized.
It is thought that the technique was developed in the wild to get necessary nutrients in poor quality soil and even various plants grown in your vegetable garden still have the ability.
The researchers, publishing their finding in the Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society, said: “We may be surrounded by many more murderous plants than we think.” “We are accustomed to thinking of plants as being immobile and harmless, and there is something deeply frightening about the thought of meateating plants,” they added.Tomatoes and potatoes kill insects to ________.
A.get more sticky hairs |
B.make themselves grow better |
C.make their roots stronger |
D.avoid falling down to the ground |
The word “carnivorous” in Paragraph 3 most probably means ________.
A.fastgrowing | B.harmless |
C.insectkilling | D.nutritious |
The insectkilling technique of vegetables is developed most probably through ________.
A.evolution of species |
B.helps from other garden plants |
C.artificial cultivation |
D.nutrients preserved in rich soil |
The text is probably taken from ________.
A.a student book | B.a science fiction |
C.a scientific repot | D.a bulletin board |
Brighton: It is a seaside resort on the English Channel. Only 50 miles from London, it offers a good variety of lively entertainment. It is a cheerful place, busy and crowded in the summer, but alive in every season of the year. Its royal pavilion(布莱顿皇宫)is a masterpiece of English architecture.
Durham: Whatever travelers see or don't see in England, they must see this city, in the northeast, just south of NewcastleuponTyne. No one will forget the sight of its cathedral(教堂)and castle rising together on a steep hill overlooking a loop in the River Wear, which almost surrounds them. The cathedral itself is one of the great medieval(中世纪的,公元476~1500)buildings in Europe.
Liverpool: A port in the northwest of England which possesses a quality that is not found in quite the same way anywhere else in England: the quality of grandeur (壮观). Liverpool has this grandeur in its site on the broad River Mersey (more than half a mile wide) with the houses rising near it; in its great dock buildings, its broad streets, and its two enormous cathedrals.
Edinburgh: It has long been the capital of Scotland. Edinburgh Castle is Edinburgh's important building, controlling the city from its perch on a rock over a hundred meters above sea level. Another important building is the Palace of Holyrood House, begun by James Ⅲ around 1500. Between the castle and the palace is the Royal Mile, which was the center of Edinburgh life before the 17th century and is fascinating to visit now.Which is the suitable time to visit Brighton ?
A.Only summer | B.All the year around |
C.Holidays | D.Weekdays |
Which of the following place mentions both a castle and a cathedral ?
A.Brighton | B.Durham |
C.Liverpool0 | D.Edinburgh |
From this article, which of the following statements is WRONG?
A.Around the broad River Mersey you can enjoy the unique quality of Liverpool . |
B.The sight of Durham's cathedral and castle is probably best seen from the banks of the Riverwear . |
C.The Palace of Holyrood House is much older than the cathedral in Durham. |
D.Edinburgh Castle was built over a hundred meters above sea level. |
This article can be found in ________.
A.a travel magazine |
B.a daily newspaper |
C.a chapter of science fiction |
D.a column in the financial press |
The first robot rover to land on the Moon in nearly 40 years, China's Jade Rabbit, has begun sending back photos, with shots of its lunar lander(登月飞行器). Jade Rabbit rolled down a ramp lowered by the lander and on to the volcanic plain known as Sinus Iridum at 04:35 Beijing time on Saturday (20:35 GMT).It moved to a spot a few metres away, its historic short journey recorded by the lander. On Sunday evening the two machines began photographing each other. A Chinese flag is clearly visible on the Jade Rabbit as it stands deployed on the Moon's surface.
Ma Xingrui, chief mander of China's lunar programme, declared the mission (任务)a “plete success”. The first soft landing on the Moon since 1976 is the latest step in China's ambitious space programme, says BBC science reporter Paul Rincon.
The lander will operate there for a year, while the rover is expected to work for some three months. The Chang'e3 mission landed some 12 days after being launched atop a Chinesedeveloped Long March 3B rocket from Xichang in the country's south. The official Xinhua news service reported that the lander began its descent(下降)on Saturday just after 13:00 GMT, touching down in Sinus Iridum (the Bay of Rainbows) 11 minutes later. “I was lucky enough to see a prototype rover(原型月球车) in Shanghai a few years ago it's a wonderful technological achievement to have landed,” Prof Andrew Coates, from UCL's Mullard Space Science Laboratory, told BBC News.
Chang'e3 is the third unmanned rover mission to touch down on the lunar surface, and the first to go there in more than 40 years. The last was an 840kg (1,900lb) Soviet vehicle known as Lunokhod2, which was kept warm by polonium(钋)210. But the sixwheeled Chinese vehicle carries a more sophisticated payload(复杂的有效负荷), including groundpenetrating radar which will gather measurements of the lunar soil and crust.What does the text mainly talk about?
A.China's space and aeronautics industry develops quickly. |
B.The importance of China's space and aeronautics industry. |
C.China's Jade Rabbit Moon rover sends back first photos. |
D.Chang'e3 is the third unmanned rover mission to touch down on the lunar surface. |
After ________ years' hard and scientific work, the first soft landing on the Moon has made such great progress.
A.nearly 40 | B.37 |
C.64 | D.more than 40 |
The purpose that the Chinese moon rover has visited the moon is to ________.
A.do some research about the moon |
B.be the first settler on the moon |
C.to plant the Chinese flag onto the moon |
D.send a lovely jade rabbit onto the moon |
From the text, we know that the lander began its descent on Saturday just after ________ Beijing time.
A.13:00 | B.20:00 |
C.22:00 | D.21:00 |
Google has been collecting tons of data about smartphone usage around the world. Here are some of the most surprising and interesting facts:
Android is most popular in Japan, with 55% of respondents(调查对象) using it, compared with 39% for iOS.Android is also number one in a few other countries, including New Zealand (41%), the US(40%), and China (38%).
iOS is farthest ahead in Switzerland, with 52% usage vs 23% for Android.Other countries where iOS is far ahead include Australia (49% vs 25% Android), Canada (45% vs 23% Android and 23% Blackberry), and France (43% vs 25% Android).
In Egypt, Windows Mobile is far more popular than iOS.13% of survey respondents use the Microsoft smartphone platform, behind Symbian (19%) and Android (14%). iOS is very far down at 4%.
Mobile social networking is biggest in Mexico and Argentina, where 74% and 73% of users visit a social network daily.But mobilesocial is weak in Japan where 34% of users never visit a social network on their phone, and this figure rises to 41% in Brazil.
Watching video is most popular in Saudi Arabia, with 59% of respondents doing it daily.Number two is Egypt, with 41%.
Chinese users shop from their phones.59% of Chinese users do this, compared with only 41% in secondplace Egypt.Chinese users also love to write reviews.41% of them write a review of a local business after looking it up on their smartphone.Number two, Japan, is far behind, with only 24% of respondents doing this.
。Which of the following best describes the usage of the smartphone operating systems in Egypt?
A.Windows Mobile>iOS>Symbian>Android |
B.Android>Windows Mobile>iOS>Symbian |
C.iOS>Android>Symbian>Windows Mobile |
D.Symbian>Android>Windows Mobile>iOS |
In which of the following countries is mobile social networking least popular?
A.Brazil. | B.Japan. |
C.Mexico. | D.Argentina. |
In which section of a newspaper can we most probably read the passage?
A.Health. | B.Environment. |
C.Technology. | D.Entertainment. |