There are new findings that not enough sleep may cause people to gain weight. Researchers say a lack of sleep can produce hormonal(激素的) changes that increase feelings of hunger.
In one study, researchers in the United States examined information on more than 1000 people. The people had taken part in a long-term study of sleep disorders.
Some people slept less than five hours a night. They had 15 percent higher blood levels of a hormone called ghrelin than people who slept eight hours. And they had 15 percent less of the hormone leptin. Experts say ghrelin helps make people feel hungry; leptin makes you feel full.
The scientists say these hormonal changes may be a cause of obesity in Western societies. They note the combination that sleep limitation is common and food is widely available.
The results were not affected by how much people exercised. People who are awake longer have more time to burn energy. But the researchers say loss of sleep may increase hunger especially for high-calorie foods, so people gain weight. It seems that, for survival, the body may be designed to store more fat during times with less sleep.
Researchers from Stanford University in California and the University of Wisconsin did the study. They found that the best amount of sleep for weight control is 7.7 hours a night.The Public Library of Science published the findings in its journal Medicine . Internet users can read the full study, free of charge, at plos. org.
Not enough sleep can cause obesity by ______.
A.burning more of your energy |
B.making you want to eat more food |
C.keeping you from doing exercise |
D.helping you feel great without food |
Which would be a point supported by the reported findings?
The more you sleep, the farther away you are from obesity.
Those who don’t sleep at all are the most likely to put on weight.
Sleeping contributes more to obesity than eating.
It’s not wise to use sleep hours for exercise.When you sleep 7.7 hours a night, you will ______ .
have your ghrelin level rise and leptin level drop
have your leptin level rise and ghrelin level drop
have your ghretin and leptin levels properly balanced
have your hunger increase and your weight decrease The writer wrote this passage to _______ .
A.make a news report |
B.offer a piece of medical advice |
C.make an advertisement |
D.keep a record of the old findings |
You can read the findings________.
A.Only on the Internet |
B.only in Medicine |
C.Both on the Internet and in Medicine |
D.Neither on the Internet nor in Medicine |
O. Henry was a pen name used by an American writer of short stories. His real name was William Sydney Porter. He was born in North Carolina in 1862. As a young boy he lived an exciting life. He did not go to school for very long, but he managed to teach himself everything he needed to know. When he was about 20 years old, O. Henry went to Texas, where he tried different jobs. He first worked on a newspaper, and then had a job in a bank, when some money went missing from the bank O. Henry was believed to have stolen it. Because of that, he was sent to prison. During the three years in prison, he learned to write short stories. After he got out of prison, he went to New York and continued writing. He wrote mostly about New York and the life of the poor there. People liked his stories, because simple as the tales were, they would finish with a sudden change at the end, to the reader’s surprise.In which order did O. Henry do the following things?
a. Lived in New York. b. Worked in a bank. c. Travelled to Texas.
d. Was put in prison. e. Had a newspaper job. f. Learned to write stories.
A.e. c. f. b. d. a | B.c. e. b. d. f. a | C.e. b. d. c. a. f. | D.c. b. e. d. a f. |
O. Henry went to prison because .
A.people thought he had stolen money from the newspaper |
B.he broke the law by not using his own name |
C.he wanted to write stories about prisoners |
D.people thought he had taken money that was not his |
What do we know about O. Henry before he began writing?
A.He was well-educated. | B.He was not serious about his work. |
C.He was devoted to the poor. | D.He was very good at learning. |
Where did O. Henry get most material for his short stories?
A.His life inside the prison. | B.The newspaper articles he wrote. |
C.The city and people of New York. | D.His exciting early life as a boy. |
It was a winter morning, just a couple of weeks before Christmas 2005. While most people were warming up their cars, Trevor, my husband, had to get up early to ride his bike four kilometers away from home to work. On arrival, he parked his bike outside the back door as he usually does. After putting in 10 hours of labor, he returned to find his bike gone.
The bike, a black Kona 18 speed, was our only transport. Trevor used it to get to work, putting in 60-hour weeks to support his young family. And the bike was also used to get groceries(食品杂货),saving us from having to walk long distances from where we live.
I was so sad that someone would steal our bike that I wrote to the newspaper and told them our story. Shortly after that, several people in our area offered to help. One wonderful stranger even bought a bike, then called my husband to pick it up. Once again my husband had a way to get to and from his job. It really is an honor that a complete stranger would go out of their way for someone they have never met before.
People say that a smile can be passed from one person to another, but acts of kindness from strangers are even more so. This experience has had a spreading effect in our lives because it strengthened our faith in humanity(人性)as a whole. And it has influenced us to be more mindful of ways we, too, can share with others. No matter how big or how small, an act of kindness shows that someone cares. And the results can be everlasting. Why was the bike so important to the couple?
A.The man’s job was bike racing. |
B.It was their only possession. |
C.It was a nice Kona 18 speed. |
D.They used it for work and daily life. |
We can infer from the text that ____________.
A.the couple worked 60 hours a week. |
B.people were busy before Christmas |
C.the stranger brought over the bike |
D.life was hard for the young family. |
How did people get to know the couple’s problem?
A.From radio broadcasts. | B.From a newspaper. |
C.From TV news. | D.From a stranger. |
What do the couple learn from their experience?
A.Strangers are usually of little help. |
B.One should take care of their bike. |
C.News reports make people famous. |
D.An act of kindness can mean a lot. |
British potato farmers were angry and wanted the expression “couch potato” to be taken out of the dictionary because it harmed the vegetable’s image.
The British Potato Council wants the Oxford English Dictionary to replace the expression with the term “couch slouch”, with protests being outside Parliament in London and the offices of Oxford University Press.
Kathryn Race, head of marketing at the Council, which represents some 4,000 planters and processors, said the group had complained in writing to the OED but had yet to receive a response.
“We are trying to get rid of the image that potatoes are bad for you,” she said on Monday.
“The potato has had its knocks in the past. Of course it is not the Oxford English Dictionary’s fault but we want to use another term instead of “couch potato” because potatoes are naturally healthy.”
The OED says that “couch potato” began as American slang, meaning “a person who spends his or her leisure time sitting around, especially watching television or video tapes.”
The Potato Council says its campaign is backed by dieticians (饮食学家) who say the vegetable is low in fat and high in vitamin C.
Supporting the campaign, famous cook Antony Worrall Thompson said the vegetable was one of Britain’s favorite foods.
“Not only are they healthy, they are also convenient and yummy (美味). Life without potato is like a sandwich without a filling,” he said.
John Simpson, chief editor of the Oxford English Dictionary, said the dictionary first included the term “couch potato” in 1993 and said “dictionaries just reflect the words that society uses.”
Simpson said words were never taken out of the full-length dictionary, which includes some 650,000 words in 20 volumes.
But little-used words can be removed from the smaller dictionaries to make way for newer ones.
“If society stops using words then they get taken out of the smaller dictionaries,” he added.
The first known recorded use of the expression “couch potato” was in an article in Los Angeles Times, in 1979, Simpson said.
Nigel Evans, a member of Parliament for the Ribble Valley in Lancashire, has made a motion in support of the campaign, highlighting the nutritional value of the British potato.British potato farmers wanted to _________.
A.advertise their produces |
B.call for a higher price for their potatoes |
C.remove the expression “couch potato” from the dictionary |
D.let people know how important the potato is in people’s lives |
The farmers think that _________.
A.potatoes have had a bad image |
B.Potatoes are good for people by nature |
C.potatoes sometimes do harm to people |
D.it’s the dictionary’s fault to use the expression “couch potato” |
John Simpson thinks that _________.
A.the expression can be taken out of every kind of dictionary |
B.dictionaries do not necessarily reflect the words the society uses |
C.little-used words can remain in the smaller dictionaries |
D.it is impossible for them to take the expression out of the dictionary |
What is wrong with the expression “couch potato” according to the farmers in this passage?
A.It is connected with unfavorable meaning. |
B.Potato should be used in the expression. |
C.It is borrowed from America English. |
D.It refers to a kind of person. |
During my elementary school years, I used to compare my mom with my best friend Tiffany's mom.
Tiffany's mom always gave her lots of money to buy the most fashionable clothes and favorite food. Her mom allowed her to do anything she liked. I really admired Tiffany. My mom didn't give me much pocket money and she always told me that I should behave myself. I was annoyed with her.
Whenever I didn't get what I wanted, I would complain to my mom, Tiffany's mom would give her that! I wish she were my mom. "Every time, my morn would calmly say "Poor Tiffany". I couldn't understand her. "She shouldn't be feeling sorry for Tiffany!" I thought. "She should be feeling sorry for me."
One day, I couldn't help saying to Mom, "Poor Tiffany? Lucky Tiffany! She gets everything she wants! Why do you feel sorry for her? " I burst into tears.
My mom sat down next to me and said softly. "Yes, I do feel sorry for her. I have been teaching you a lesson that she will never be taught. "
I looked up at her. "What are you talking about?"
Mom said with care, "One day she will really want something. Maybe she'll find out that she can't have it. Her mother won't always be around to give her money, and what's more, money can't buy everything. "
She continued, "I have taught you valuable lessons by not giving you everything you want. You'll know how to look for bargains and save money, but she won't. You'll understand that you need to work hard to get the things that you want but she won't. When Tiffany is a grown woman, she'll wake up one day and she will be wishing that she had a mom like the one you've got. Life lessons are more important than modern clothes and delicious food. "
It took some time, but I eventually understood my mom's words. Now I am a happy and successful woman.During the author's elementary school years, she.
A.wished that her mom were as good as Tiffany's |
B.went to school with Tiffany every day |
C.usually compared her lesson with Tiffany's |
D.sometimes gave lots of money to Tiffany |
Why did the author's mom always say "Poor Tiffany"?
A.She felt sorry for Tiffany because Tiffany was poor. |
B.She wanted to tell a lie to comfort the author. |
C.She thought that Tiffany was spoiled by her mother. |
D.She told the author this and wanted her to help Tiffany. |
What do we learn about the author's mother?
A.She was strict and taught the author to be independent. |
B.She cared for other people's children more than her own. |
C.She thought that life lessons were as important as money. |
D.She was so poor that she couldn't give the author much money. |
What can we infer from the passage?
A.The author was quite annoyed with her mother in the past. |
B.The author's mother felt sorry for Tiffany. |
C.Tiffany's mother took the author's mother's advice. |
D.The author is thankful to her mother now. |
LONDON (Reuters Life!) ---- Forget about talking your children into considering life as a doctor or a teacher and start training them for the talent show.
A survey of British parents showed the aspirations (志向) of their children are greatly different from what they dreamed about when considering who they wanted to be when they grew up.
Although astronaut (宇航员) still remains fairly high on the list of careers (事业) kids dream about these days, others like doctor and teacher have been taken the place of by the desire (欲望) to win good name and money as a sporting hero, pop star or actor.
The parents of children aged 5 to 11 said the choice of lawyer had dropped by only one place on a top 10 list to sixth, while teacher had dropped to ninth from top in the last 25 or more years.
The survey for British TV channel “Watch” found a great difference between the genders (性别) of today’s young people when compared with their parents’ dreams 25 years or more ago.
Playing professional football, being an astronaut and joining the firefighting service topped the boys’ choices, while girls are more likely to be dreaming of taking to the stage as a pop star or actress or joining the medical profession.
When asked what they would like their children to do for a living, today’s parents still like the academic (学术的) professions (职业), with law and medicine scoring highly, while being a boss came third.
Parents also praised job happiness above wealth (财富) when it comes to their hopes for their children.
Nearly 70 percent of the parents surveyed thought that they failed to follow their dreams when it came to their career, with 37 percent thinking it was caused by a lack of aspiration and not having the necessary conditions.From the passage we know that most parents still hope that in the future their children can take up ______.
A.jobs such as musicians, singers and dancers |
B.jobs related to academic professions like lawyers and doctors |
C.jobs in which they will not be endangered |
D.jobs which will be well paid only |
According to the survey for British TV channel “Watch”, which of the following is the boys’ best career choice?
A.A pop star | B.An actor | C.A doctor | D.A firefighter |
What can be learnt from the passage?
A.Parents’ hope for their children’s career did not change too much. |
B.Parents pay much attention to the income of their children. |
C.Less than half of the parents who were surveyed didn’t follow their dreams. |
D.Most parents didn’t have the necessary conditions to realize their dreams. |
What is the main idea of the passage?
A.Many reasons cause the change of children’s dreams. |
B.Parents’ dreams are different form children’s. |
C.Parents are changing their own dreams. |
D.Children’s dreams are always changing. |