Against the assumption that forest fires in Alaska, Canada and Siberia warm the climate, scientists have discovered that cooling may occur in areas where burnt trees allow more snow to mirror more sunlight into space.
This finding suggests that taking steps to prevent northern forest fires to limit the release of greenhouse gases may warm the climate in northern regions. Usually large fires destroyed forests in these areas over the past decade. Scientists predict that with climate warming, fires may occur more frequently over next several centuries as a result of a longer fire season. Sunlight taken in by the earth tends to cause warming, while heat mirrored back into space tends to cause cooling.
This is the first study to analyze all aspects of how northern fires influence climate. Earlier studies by other scientists have suggested that fire in northern regions speed up climate warming because greenhouse gases from burning trees and plants are released into the atmosphere and thus trap heat.
Scientists found that right after the fire, large amounts of greenhouse gases entered the atmosphere and caused warming. Ozone（臭氧）levels increased, and ash from the fire fell on far-off sea ice, darkening the surface and causing more radiation from the sun to be taken in. The following spring, however, the land within the area of the fire was brighter than before the fire, because fewer trees covered the ground. Snow on the ground mirrored more sunlight back into space, leading to cooling.
“We need to find out all possible ways to reduce the growth of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.” Scientists tracked the change in amount of radiation entering and leaving the climate system as a result of the fire, and found a measurement closely related to the global air temperature. Typically, fire in northern regions occurs in the same area every 80 to 150 years. Scientists, however, found that when fire occurs more frequently, more radiation is lost from the earth and cooling results. Specifically, they determined when fire returns 20 years earlier than predicated, 0.5 watts per square meter of area burned are soaked up by the earth from greenhouse gases, but 0.9 watts per square meter will be sent back into space. The net effect is cooling. Watts are used to measure the rate at which energy is gained or lost from the earth. According to the new findings, taking steps to prevent northern forest fires may _______.
| A．result in a warming climate | B．cause the forest fires to occur more frequently |
| C．lead to a longer fire season | D．protect the forests and the environment there |
Earlier studies about northern forest fires ________.
| A．analyze all aspects of how northern fires influence climate |
| B．indicate that forest fires will pollute the atmosphere |
| C．suggest that people should take measures to protect environment |
| D．suggest that the fires will speed up climate warming |
The underlined phrase “soaked up” in the last paragraph most probably means ________.
| A．released | B．absorbed | C．created | D．disturbed |
From the text we can draw a conclusion that forest fires in Alaska, Canada and Siberia may ______.
| A．warm the climate as the assumption goes |
| B．allow more snow to reflect more sunlight into space and thus cool the climate |
| C．destroy large areas of forests and pollute the far-off sea ice |
| D．help to gain more energy rather than release more energy |
Wal-Mart is not just the world's largest retailer （零售商）. It's the world's largest company, which sells in three months what number-two retailer Home Depot sells in a year.
Wal-Mart exercises its power for just one purpose: to bring the lowest possible prices to its customers. At Wal-Mart, that goal is never reached. The retailer has a clear policy for suppliers: On basic products that don't change, the price Wal-Mart will pay, and will charge shoppers, must drop year after year. But what almost no one outside the world of Wal-Mart and none of its 21,000 suppliers know is the high cost of those low prices. To survive in the face of its pricing demands, makers of everything from bikes to jeans have had to close US plants in favor of obtaining products from abroad.
Indeed, the real story of Wal-Mart, the story that never gets told, is the story of the pressure the biggest retailer constantly applies to its suppliers in the name of bringing us "every day low prices".
The giant retailer' s low prices often come with a high cost. Wal-Mart' s pressure can crush the companies it does business with and force them to send jobs overseas. Are we shopping our way straight to the unemployment line? Of course, US companies have been moving jobs offshore for decades, long before Wal-Mart was a retailing power. But there is no question that the chain is helping accelerate the loss of American jobs to low-wage countries such as Thailand.
People ask, "How can it be bad for things to come into the US cheaply?" Sure, it's great to have bargains. But you can' t buy anything if you' re not employed.
There is no question that Wal-Mart's drive to squeeze out cost has benefited consumers. By now, it is accepted wisdom that Wal-Mart makes the companies it does business with more efficient and focused. Wal-Mart itself is known for continuous improvement in its ability to handle, move, and track goods. It is legendary （传奇） for forcing its suppliers to redesign everything from their packaging to their computer systems. It is also legendary for quite straightforwardly telling them what it will pay for their goods. How do suppliers meet the requirements of Wal-Mart?
| A．To sell even more goods in three months. |
| B．To cut down the employment rate sharply. |
| C．To charge shoppers at a much higher price. |
| D．To run the business in a well-organized way. |
Wal-Mart's low price policy results in ____.
| A．more high-paying jobs |
| B．better designed packages |
| C．bigger profit of its partners |
| D．more jobless American workers |
What can we infer from the passage?
| A．Still more quality goods will be provided. |
| B．The food you get at Wal-Mart costs least. |
| C．The value of Mal-Mart is over assessed. |
| D．Wal-Mart is a very demanding company. |
What's the best title for the passage?
| A．The Fortune Wal-Mart Makes |
| B．The Wal-Mart you don't Know |
| C．The Biggest Retailer—Wal-Mart |
| D．The Money Saving Tip in Wal-Mart |
Tui Na and Your Emotional Health
In Traditional Chinese Medicine the body, mind and spirit cannot be divided and so the unique whole-body treatment in Tui Na can also be a useful treatment correcting any imbalances in the body's energy before symptoms and disease can develop. It also works to restore emotional harmony as well as physical health. This is why after a Tui Na treatment many people "feel good". Many people in China use Tui Na regularly to keep healthy and to deal with some specific illnesses.
Tui Na is performed on the clothed body and the patient is either lying on a couch or sitting on a chair. Therapists using a variety of strokes or movements will control the intensity and direction of pressure in an exact way. The unique rolling movement in Tui Na is one of the most difficult strokes to learn and students have to practice sometimes for many months on a rice bag before they are allowed to practice on the human body.
Stress
Tui Na is of course very useful for treating stress.
It distributes the energy around the whole body. It is believed that Tui Na moves the strong energy in the tense muscles to the weaker areas, thus making a more balanced body. When your Qi （energy in the body） flow is balanced you feel relaxed and comfortable. Tui Na is especially useful for stiff shoulders and tense neck muscles.
Emotions
In Traditional Chinese Medicine each major organ is linked to an emotion. By balancing the energy in the organ, the relevant emotion will be calmed. When your emotions are out of control, you would usually turn to your doctor or perhaps a psychotherapist. But perhaps some people would not like to be seeing a psychotherapist or feel nervous about discussing their problems with others. With Tui Na one does not need to tell the therapist anything one does not want to. The treatment of Tui Na can deal with the problem itself — although if one does need to talk, then the safe space is there to do so. An active dialogue between the therapist and the patient will help to get a better effect.
How the major organs rule your emotions
Each major organ — the heart, the stomach, the spleen, the liver, the bladder, the kidneys, the lungs, etc. — is linked to a relevant emotion.
The heart is linked to joy, excitement and sadness. If the heart is out of balance, the patient may dream a lot at night and often forget something important in the day.
The stomach and spleen are connected with too much thinking or worrying — over anxiety. When the stomach is out of balance there is often a lack of energy. The patient often feels very tired and has no interest in doing anything at all.
The liver and gall bladder are linked to anger. In Chinese Medicine the eyes are connected with the liver, and many people who suffer from anger often suffer from eye problems. The gall bladder rules decision-making and too much energy here can lead to rashness, while if there is too little it can bring about indecision. Where there is a history of depression, the therapist would look to the liver.
The bladder and kidneys are linked to fear of all kinds, from simple anxieties and phobias to vague fears and worries.
The lungs are connected with feelings of grief and sadness. When there is a history of grief, the therapist would look to the lungs.
Tui Na is used in almost all the hospitals in China and very popular among Chinese people. It is a useful and valuable method of restoring Qi balance, when emotional and physical health is out of balance. Tui Na is one of the remaining secrets of Chinese Medicine. According to the passage, which statement is TRUE about Tui Na?
| A．Tui Na is a whole-body treatment and can't be divided into different parts. |
| B．Tui Na can be used to balance the diseases before they can develop in the body. |
| C．Tui Na can bring back not only physical health but also emotional health. |
| D．Tui Na only makes people "feel good" but do not actually cure disease. |
How can the emotion be calmed?
| A．By linking the organ to an emotion. |
| B．By telling the therapist anything one does not want to. |
| C．By discussing their problems with others. |
| D．By balancing the energy in the relevant organ. |
When the stomach is out of balance, .
| A．the patient will have a stomachache |
| B．the patient will have a lot to worry about |
| C．the patient will have nothing to do |
| D．the patient will not feel like doing anything |
How Many Lies Do the Children Tell You?
Mothers who feel their children don' t appreciate them can add another grievance to the list: half the time, their children are lying to them. A study designed to expose the truth about lying shows that undergraduates lie to their mothers in 46% of their conversations. Still, mums should feel better than total strangers, who are told lies an astonishing 77 % of the time.
Bella Depaulo and a team of psychologists from the University of Virginia, Charlottesville, asked 77 undergraduates to keep a record of all their conversations for a week, and write down whether they lied at any time. DePaulo named lying broadly, as "when you intentionally try to mislead someone", so she would catch the smallest of lies.
The students told an average of two lies a day. They said they had been studying when they had been out drinking. One told his parents that a textbook cost $50 rather than $20 so that they would send him extra money. Female students constantly told their plain-looking roommates that they were pretty. "They are everyday lies," says DePaulo.
DePaulo and her colleagues conclude that people tend to tell fewer lies to those they feel closest to. College students lied to their best friends 28% of the time but lied to acquaintances 48% of the time. In close relationships, people were more likely to tell "kind-hearted" lies, designed to protect feelings, rather than self-serving lies.
Romantic（浪漫的）partners lie somewhere between close friends and acquaintances. Students lied to romantic partners about a third of the time. DePaulo thinks that unmarried lovers can expect less honesty than best friends because of the insecurity that comes with romance.
Mothers can take heart from one other finding. They may have been lied to, but at least their children talked to them. The students were recorded telling few lies to their fathers because they had little interaction with them. What is the meaning of the underlined word "grievance" in Paragraph 1?
| A．opinion. | B．complaint. | C．belief. | D．difficulty. |
According to the passage, college students felt closest to ______ .
| A．mothers | B．best friends |
| C．acquaintances | D．romantic partners |
Female students lied to their roommates to.
| A．get money from them | B．offer them the services |
| C．gain more security | D．make them happy |
What is the purpose of this article?
| A．To present a fact. | B．To argue an idea. |
| C．To tell a story. | D．To explain a theory. |
Walking down a path through some woods in Georgia, I saw a small pool of water ahead on the path. I angled my direction to go around it on the part of the path that wasn't covered by water or mud. As I reached the pool, I was suddenly attacked! Yet I did nothing for the attack. It was so unpredictable and from somewhere totally unexpected. I was surprised as well as unhurt though I had been struck four or five times. I backed up a foot and my attacker stopped attacking me. Had I been hurt I wouldn't have found it amusing. And I was laughing. After all, I was being attacked by a butterfly!
Having stopped, laughing, I took a step forward. My attacker rushed me again. He charged towards me at full speed, attempting to hurt me but in vain. For a second time, I took a step backwards while my attacker paused. I wasn't sure what to do. After all, it's just not everyday that one is attacked by a butterfly. I stepped back to look the situation over. My attacker moved back to land on the ground. That's when I discovered why my attacker was charging me only moments earlier. He had a mate and she was dying.
Sitting close beside her, he opened and closed his wings as if to fan her. I could only admire the love and courage of that butterfly in his concern for his mate. He had taken it up on himself to attack me for his mate's sake （缘故）, even though she was clearly dying and I was so large. He did so just to give her those extra few precious moments of life, should I have been careless enough to step on her. His courage in attacking something thousands of times larger and heavier than himself just for his mate's safety seemed admirable. I couldn't do anything other than reward him by walking on the more difficult side of the pool. He had truly earned those moments to be with her, undisturbed.
Since then, I've always tried to remember the courage of that butterfly whenever I see huge barriers facing me.Why did the writer change his direction while walking down a path?
| A．To get close to a butterfly. |
| B．To look over the bad situation. |
| C．To escape a sudden attack. |
| D．To avoid getting his shoes dirty. |
What made the man feel funny?
| A．Making the attacker pause. |
| B．Being attacked by a butterfly. |
| C．Being stepped on by his mate. |
| D．Discovering the energetic butterfly. |
From this experience the man learned.
| A．what he should do when faced with trouble |
| B．people should show sympathy to the weak |
| C．how he should deal with attacks |
| D．people should protect butterflies |
Which of the following words can best describe the butterfly?
| A．Careless. | B．Amusing. | C．Courageous. | D．Aggressive. |
The world is filled with smart, talented, educated and gifted people. We meet them every day. A few days ago, my car was not running well. I pulled it into a garage and the young mechanic had it fixed in just a few minutes. He knew what was wrong by simply listening to the engine. I was amazed. The sad truth is, great talent is not enough.
I am constantly shocked at how little talented people earn. I heard the other day that less than 5 percent of Americans earn more than $100,000 a year. A business consultant who specializes in the medical trade told me how many doctors and dentists struggled financially. It was this business consultant who gave me the phrase, “They are one skill away from great wealth.”
There is an old saying that goes, “Job means ‘just over broke（破产）’.” And unfortunately, I would say that the saying applies to millions of people. Because school does not think financial intelligence is intelligence, and most workers live within their means. They work and they pay the bills. Instead I recommend to young people to seek work for what they will learn, more than what they will earn.
When I ask the classes I teach, “How many of you can cook a better hamburger than McDonald’s?”， almost all the students raise their hands. I then ask, “So if most of you can cook a better hamburger, how come McDonald’s makes more money than you?” The answer is obvious: McDonald’s is excellent at business systems. The reason why so many talented people are poor is that they focus on making a better hamburger but know little or nothing about business systems. The world is filled with talented poor people. They focus on perfecting their skills at building a better hamburger rather than the skills of selling and delivering the hamburger.The author mentions the mechanic in the first paragraph to show that.
| A．he is just one of the talented people |
| B．he is ready to help others |
| C．he has a sharp sense of hearing |
| D．he knows little about car repairing |
The underlined part in the third paragraph can be best replaced by“”.
| A．spend more than they can afford |
| B．do in their own way |
| C．live in their own circle |
| D．live within what they earn |
Why do talented people earn so little according to the author?
| A．They don’t work hard enough. |
| B．They lack financial intelligence. |
| C．They don’t make full use of their talents. |
| D．They have no specialized skills. |
The success of McDonald’s lies in its.
| A．skills at making hamburgers |
| B．good business systems |
| C．talented workers |
| D．excellent service |
The main purpose of the author is to tell us.
| A．how young people can find a satisfactory job |
| B．what schools should teach students |
| C．why so many talented people are poor |
| D．how McDonald’s makes much money |