Four out of ten women who diet end up heavier than when they started watching their waistline, a study revealed today. The research also showed that a large percentage of women start noticing the pounds creeping back on just 21 days after reaching their ideal weight.
Yesterday, Dr Ian Campbell of the Jenny Craig weight management program said, ‘In the UK 61.4 percent of adults are overweight or obese. Successful weight management requires a long-term commitment in order to lose weight successfully and for good. Dieting can be a real challenge so setting realistic goals and remaining focused on them is important. Otherwise as this research shows, women could end up heavier than when they started.’
The “Food, Body, Mind” report was publicized by Jenny Craig who quizzed 2000 women aged between 18 and 65 who diet regularly on their attitudes, beliefs and behaviors around weight loss. Six in ten said they were currently on a diet and one in five women said they were on a continuous diet.
It found the most common triggers to start dieting was seeing their reflection in the mirror, preparing for a summer holiday or unflattering photos posted on social networking sites. Other popular reasons include comments by friends or relatives or their other half.
However, the study showed that one in ten give up within one day, while almost a fifth manage to make it to a week or more. The average is ten days. Many blamed pressure they put on themselves to lose weight too quickly for the weight gain, which leaves them with a bigger appetite than normal. Others blamed colleagues, who tuck into fatty lunches and snacks unaware of the effect it has on the dieter, while mothers’ polishing off（吃光）their children's leftovers was another common cause of weight gain. Which of the following might be the best title for this article?
| A．Diet: a tricky path to weight loss |
| B．Important things for successful diet |
| C．Four in ten women gain weight on diets |
| D．Obesity: problem for 61.4% adults in UK |
In the UK, women who go on a diet ________.
| A．are all overweight or obese |
| B．all fail because they are not persistent enough |
| C．are likely to gain weight again after reaching their ideal weight |
| D．end up heavier than when they start to diet |
The underlined word “triggers” in Paragraph 4 probably means ________.
| A．effects | B．causes | C．examples | D．imagination |
Which of the following is NOT the reason why many people stop dieting very soon?
| A．The pressure they put on themselves to lose weight quickly. |
| B．Colleagues who give them fatty lunches and snacks. |
| C．Leftovers of children’s taken by their mothers. |
| D．Reflections they see in the mirror. |
That the Leaning Tower of Pisa no longer leans quite so much after a ￡20 million project to save it has proved to be a great success.The tower, which was on the edge of collapse, has been straightened by 18 inches, returning it to its 1838 position. 
“It has straightened a little bit more than we expected, but very little helps, ”said Prof.John Burland, the only British member of the rescue committee.“The tower is still very slightly moving towards being upright. ”
The tower, which has been leaning almost since building work first began in 1173, was closed to the public in 1990 because of safety fears.The 183foot tower was nearly 15 feet off vertical and its structure was found to have been weakened by centuries of strain(作用力).
Prof.Burland said it could have collapsed “at any moment”．However, it took nine years of quarreling before any work was done.The last attempt at straightening the tower was carried out. Concrete was poured into the foundations, but the result was that the tower sank further into the soil.
The straightening work involved digging out around 70 tonnes of earth from the northern side of the tower, causing it to sink on that side.Before the digging started, the tower was fixed with steel ropes and 600 tonnes of lead weights.
However, halfway through the project, concerns at the ugliness of the weights led to their removal and the tower leaned greatly.The weights were hurriedly reattached. In one night, the tower moved more than it had averaged in an entire year.The tower's stonework has also been restored.
The Italian government stepped in after a tower collapsed in Pavia in 1989, killing four people.Experts suddenly realized that the tower at Pisa, which was similarly built and on the same sort of earth, could do the same.What would be the best title for the passage?
| A．The Building of the Leaning Tower of Pisa |
| B．Saving the Leaning Tower of Pisa |
| C．The Collapse of the Leaning Tower of Pisa |
| D．The History of the Leaning Tower of Pisa |
According to the passage, the Leaning Tower of Pisa_________________.
| A．closed for the straightening work in 1990 |
| B．began to lean more than 800 years ago |
| C．has a history of more than 1, 000 years |
| D．has become vertical |
What drove the Italian government to save the Leaning Tower of Pisa?
| A．The development of new technology. |
| B．The advice of Prof. John Burland. |
| C．The expectation of the rescue committee. |
| D．The collapse of a tower in Pavia. |
What most probably played the most important part in straightening the tower?
| A．The lead weights fixed to the tower. |
| B．Restoring the stonework. |
| C．Pouring concrete into the foundations. |
| D．Digging earth from the southern side of the tower. |
February has long been a month of romance.With the sweet smell of roses in the air, romantic films hit cinemas and love stories fill newspapers and magazines.
On the 14th day, it is a custom for a boy to take his girlfriend out to dinner, buy her flowers and chocolates, write poems, sing to her or even spell out her name with rose petals! This is what you see on Valentine's Day, a day named after Valentine who was a priest in third century Rome.When the emperor decided that single men could become better soldiers than those with wives, he didn't allow marriage.
But Valentine continued to perform marriage ceremonies for young lovers in secret.When his actions were discovered, the emperor had him put to death.While in prison, it is said that Valentine fell in love with the daughter of his prison guard.Before his death, he wrote her a letter, which he signed “From your Valentine”， an expression that is still in use today.Valentine died for what he believed in and so was made a Saint(圣者), as well as becoming one of history's most romantic characters.
Nowadays, Valentine's Day is also popular among Chinese young people.Some students are planning to make Valentine's cards for parents, teachers and friends.Others want to hold parties at which they will exchange small gifts and eat heart－shaped cakes.The idea is to have fun and encourage people to share in the spirit of St.Valentine.The best title should be __________.
| A．Valentine's Day | B．A Brave Priest |
| C．Valentine's Day in China | D．A Romantic Man |
What does the underlined word mean in Para.2?
| A．树叶 | B．枝条 | C．花瓣 | D．花粉 |
Why did the emperor in Rome NOT allow marriage in his country?
| A．Because there were few women in his country at that time. |
| B．Because he thought men without wives could be better soldiers. |
| C．Because there wasn't enough food for so many people. |
| D．Because he wanted to control the birth rate. |
Valentine was put into prison because __________.
| A．he killed one of the soldiers |
| B．he stole a lot of food |
| C．he didn't obey the emperor's order |
| D．he didn't want to be a soldier |
The health of millions could be at risk because medicinal plants are being used up.These plants are used to make traditional medicine，including drugs to fight cancer.“The loss of medicinal plants is a quiet disaster，”says Sara Oldfield，secretary general of the NGO Botanic Gardens Conservation International.
Most people worldwide (including 80 percent of all Africans)rely on herbal medicines(草药)which are got mostly from wild plants.But some 15,000 of the 50,000 medicinal species are under threat of dying out，according to a report from the international conversation group Plantlife.Shortages have been reported in China，India，Kenya，Nepal，Tanzania and Uganda.
Overharvesting does the most harm，though pollution and competition from invasive(侵略性的)species are both responsible.“Businessmen generally harvest medicinal plants，not caring about sustain ability，”the Plantlife report says.“Damage is serious partly because they have no idea of it，but it is mainly because such collection is unorganized.” Medicinal trees at risk include the Himalayan yew and the African cherry，which are used to treat some cancers.
The solution，says the report's author，Alan Hamilton，is to encourage local people to protect these plants.Ten projects studied by Plantlife in India，Pakistan，China，Nepal，Uganda and Kenya showed this method can succeed.In Uganda the project has kept a sustainable supply of lowcost cancer treatments，and in China a public run medicinal plant project has been created for the first time.
“Improving health，earning an income and keeping cultural traditions are important in encouraging people to protect medicinal plants，”says Hamilton.“You have to pay attention to what people are interested in.” Ghillean Prance，the former director of the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew in London，agrees that medicinal plants are in need of protection.
“Not nearly enough is being done，”he told New Scientist.“We are destroying the very plants that are of most use to us.”What is the passage mainly about?
| A．The function of medicinal plants. |
| B．The importance of traditional medicine. |
| C．More and more people rely on herbal medicines. |
| D．The dangerous situation of medicinal plants and ways of protecting them. |
Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
| A．About 30% of medicinal species are at risk of dying out. |
| B．Medicinal plants are mainly used to treat cancers. |
| C．80% of African countries are reported to be short of medicinal plants. |
| D．The problem of the loss of medicinal plants appeared suddenly. |
What contributes most to the loss of medicinal plants?
| A．A lack of knowledge of sustainability. |
| B．Invasion by other species. |
| C．Environmental pollution. |
| D．Improper harvesting. |
What is a useful method of protecting medicinal plants?
| A．Improving people's health. |
| B．Letting people earn more. |
| C．Working together with the government. |
| D．Persuading the locals to protect them. |
Herta Müller, the Romanianborn German writer, has won the 2009 Nobel Prize for Literature.The award was announced in Stockholm.
Ms Müller, 56, immigrated to Germany from Romania in 1987.She is the first German writer to win the Nobel Prize for literature since Gunter Grass in 1999 and the 13th winner writing in German since the prize was first given in 1901.She is the 12th woman to get the literature prize.
But unlike Doris Leasing and V．S.Naipaul, Ms Müller is relatively unknown outside literary circles in Germany.“I am very surprised and still cannot believe it，” Ms Müller said in a statement in Germany.“I can't say anything more at the moment.”
She has written about 20 books, but just five have been translated into English, including the novels “The Land of Green Plums” and “The Appointment”．
At a news conference at the German Publishers and Booksellers Association in Berlin, where she lives, Ms Müller, wearing all black and sitting on a big chair, appeared overwhelmed by all the cameras in her face.She spoke of the 30 years she spent under a dictatorship, describing “living with fear in the morning that in the evening one would no longer exist”．
When asked what it meant that her name would now be mentioned at the same moment as German greats like Thomas Mann and Heinrich Bll, Ms Müller remained calm.“I am now nothing better and I'm nothing worse，” she said.“My inner thing is writing.That's what I can persist_in,_and if nothing special happens, I will never give up.”
Earlier in the day, at a news conference in Stockholm, Peter Englund，secretary of the Swedish Academy, said Ms Müller was honored for her “very, very special language” and because “she has really a story to tell about...and growing up as a stranger in your own family.”Which of the following statements about Ms Müller is true?
| A．Most of her works have been translated into English. |
| B．She immigrated to Germany from Romania when she was 35. |
| C．She's the first Romanian writer that has won the Nobel Prize for Literature. |
| D．She is the first German writer to win the Nobel Prize for literature in the 21st |
century.Before getting the Nobel Prize, Ms Müller __________.
| A．was famous for her works |
| B．lived a poor but happy life |
| C．was not wellknown to most people |
| D．had enough confidence in winning it |
The underlined words “persist in” in Paragraph 6 mean __________.
| A．refuse to do | B．continue to do |
| C．stop to do | D．agree to do |
We can learn from the passage that __________.
| A．Ms Müller's special language and experience made her get the Nobel Prize |
| B．most of Ms Müller's novels are unsuccessful works |
| C．Ms Müller felt much better after she won the Nobel Prize |
| D．Ms Müller was honored because of her wonderful description about German's |
life
It was about six years ago.We were at senior high school.Those days in school were gray to most Chinese students because of the college entrance examination pressure.Not our parents and teachers didn't love us，but they loved us too much.Our only happiness was a high grade in the exam.
One afternoon after the final exam，we four girls came to a small wood and we felt it only belonging to us that afternoon.We talked and laughed.We played all the games that we could think of.We felt we were on the top of the world for the first time in our life.We totally forgot the unhappiness in our life and we threw the homework and the endless exams far away out of the wood.
In the middle of the wood ran a small and peaceful stream.Now and then，we could see some wild ducks on the water looking for food.The water weeds danced happily while the water passed beside them.The air was so fresh that we breathed it freely.
The sun had set before we knew it.We had to leave the place which brought us much happiness.We agreed to come back again every time we felt bored.
Years later，we went there several times.But，every time we went there to find that great feeling，we failed.Strangely，the feeling was different from that of several years ago.
I know that wonderful experience was just for once.We can never find that kind of happiness again which only belonged to the special afternoon in our life.That was a release of our uneasy heart.We can never go back to that young age or that simple life.It was our golden ages.No matter how boring and hard the life was，it gave us something worthy to recall.We'll treasure it forever.What does the writer think of their senior high school life?
| A．Unhappy. | B．Helpless. |
| C．Useless. | D．Meaningless. |
What does “it” refer to in the second paragraph?
| A．The final exam. | B．Happiness. |
| C．A small wood. | D．A high grade. |
What does the second paragraph mainly tell us?
| A．How the girls forgot everything in the wood that afternoon. |
| B．How the girls played games in the wood that afternoon. |
| C．How peaceful the wood was that afternoon. |
| D．How the girls relaxed themselves in the wood that afternoon. |
What did the writer introduce to us in the third paragraph?
| A．Hungry wild ducks. |
| B．Dancing water weeds. |
| C．Fresh air. |
| D．A peaceful stream. |