American researchers say drinking tea may help strengthen the body’s defense system against infection. Doctors at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts, did the study. The team studied a chemical found in black, green, oolong and pekoe tea. This chemical is an amino acid(氨基酸) called L-theanine. The scientists say it may increase the strength of gamma delta T cells. That’s the letter T, not the drink. Gamma delta T cells are part of the body’s defense.
First, the researchers mixed some of these cells with antigens（抗原）found in the amino acid. Antigens help the body react to infection. Then the scientists added some bacteria. Within twenty-four hours, the cells produced a lot of interferon, a substance that fights infection. Cells not mixed with the antigens did not produce interferon (抗干扰素).
In the second part of the study, eleven people drank five to six cups of black tea every day. Ten other people drank the same amount of instant coffee. That is dried coffee mixed with hot water.
Two weeks later, and again two weeks after that, the researchers tested the blood of all twenty-one people. They also looked at what happened when they added bacteria to the blood cells. They found that the tea drinkers produced five times more interferon after they started drinking tea. The coffee drinkers did not produce interferon.
Doctor Jack Bukowski led the study. He says the antigens added to the gamma delta T cells were responsible for the increased reaction to the bacteria. He says that the study also showed that the cells were able to remember the bacteria and fight them again the next time.
Earlier research already has found that tea can help prevent heart disease and cancer. Doctor Bukowski says the new study must be repeated by more people. “If the findings prove to be true,” he says, “then tea drinking might also help protect against bacterial infections.” He says the amino acid L-theanine could be removed from the tea and used as a drug to strengthen the body’s defenses.We may know from the text that _________ can be found in different kinds of tea.
| A．L-theanine | B．Gamma delta T cells |
| C．interferon | D．bacteria |
Tea may help strengthen the body’s defense system because it helps _________.
| A．to add some bacteria to the blood cells |
| B．the body to produce more gamma delta T cells |
| C．the body to produce more interferon |
| D．to mix antigens with some of the cells in the body |
According to Dr Bukowski, _________.
| A．the findings of the study have already proved to be true |
| B．further study is needed to prove the findings true |
| C．he has taken some amino acid L-theanine from tea and made a drug with it |
| D．he is not sure whether tea help prevent heart disease and cancer |
What would be the best title for this text?
| A．Tea Is Better than Coffee | B．Our Body Needs Tea |
| C．Tea Can Help Prevent Cancer | D．Tea May Help Fight Infection |
Most Americans enjoy moving from one place to another. They are always in constant motion. For example, they often drive their cars 120 to 160 kilometres away just to have dinner with a friend or even fly to Europe just for watching a football match. In some states only one house in five has people living in it for more than five years. One may be born in one city, and go to school in another. He may finish his middle school education in two or three cities, and then attend a college far across the country. When he has entered business, he may possibly move from job to job. Moving from job to job, which is called “job-hopping”,is a very common practice in the United States.
Job-hopping does good to workers, be
cause every chance to change a job gives them a chance to move up to a higher position and to get better pay. And job-hopping also gives employers, bosses, managers the chance to benefit from the new ideas and skills that different people bring to their factories.The meaning of the underlined words is close to “_____”.
| A．looking for jobs everywhere | B．always feeling excited in movement |
| C．enjoying themselves while moving | D．keeping moving from place to place |
In some places in America,______ in one place for more than five years.
| A．most people stay | B．about one fifth of the people live |
| C．the owner of one house stays | D．the owners of five houses stay |
It seems that the writer thinks job-hopping________.
| A．is a practice worth trying | B．only does good to workers |
| C．may cause troubles | D．make many people lose their jobs |
Who might buy t
he house after reading the above advertisement?
| A．Some young students. | B．A couple with little money |
| C．A big rich family | D．A big poor family |
What room has several possible uses?
| A．The living room. | B．The bedroom. |
| C．The dining room. | D．The kitchen. |
What is emphasized(强调)in the description of each room?
| A．Floor. | B．Entrance. | C．Size. | D．Windows. |
If you are in a town in a western country, you'll often see people walking with their dogs. It is still true that a dog is the most useful animal in the world. But the reason why one keeps a dog has changed Once upon a time, a man met a dog and wanted it to help him in the fight against other animals, and he found that the dog listened to him and did what he told him to. Later people used dogs for the hunting other animals, and the dogs didn't eat what they got until their master agreed. So dogs were used for driving sheep and guarding chicks. But now the people in the towns and cities do not need dogs to fight other animals. Of course they keep them to frighten thieves, but the most important reason is that people feel lonely in the city. For a child, a dog is his best friend when he has no friends to play with. For a young wife, a dog is her child when she doesn’t have her own. For old people, a dog is also a child when their real children have grown up and left. Now people do not have to use a dog, but they keep it as a friend, just like a member of the family._______are more useful than a dog in the world.
| A．No other animals | B．Some animals | C．Many animals | D．A few animals |
In the past people kept dogs because dogs _________.
| A．could fight against other animals | B．met the people |
| C．did not eat other animals | D．helped and listened to people |
Now people keep dogs in the cities because dogs_____.
| A．fight other animals | B．are lonely |
| C．are like their friends | D．are afraid of the thieves |
A dog can be _____.
| A．a child's friend only | B．a young woman's son |
C．old people 's real child |
D．everybody's friend |
So a dog will __ in a family.
| A．always be used | B．not be useful |
| C．still fight | D．always be a good friend |
If you want to get the most out of the study of a language, you must also read for pleasure: novels, plays, travel books, and so on. And in reading books of this kind the important thing is to get on with the reading; to try to grasp what the writer is going to tell you in the book as a whole. This is impossible if you stop and think over the meaning of every single word which happens to be unfamiliar(不熟悉). You can not enjoy a story if you stop half a dozen times on every page in order to look up words in the dictionary. You may even prevent yourself from understanding the story as a whole by doing this.
When you are reading books of this kind, therefore, you will usually have to rely mainly on(依靠) the context (上下文) to help you. If you meet an unfamiliar word, do not let it take too much of your attention from the main thread(主线) of the story. In all probability(可能) you will meet the same word again a few pages later on in a slightly different context, and each time you see it that your understanding of it will become more exact.To read for pleasure means _____________.
| A．to take pleasure in reading |
| B．to be satisfied in reading book |
| C．to read such books as novels, plays, travel books, etc |
| D．to go on with reading pleasantly |
The phrase “to ge
t on with reading” in the passage has the same meaning as “_________”.
| A．to try to grasp the meaning of every sentence in the book |
B．to try to catch the meaning of every word i n the book |
| C．to try to understand all the writer is going to tell you |
| D．to try to understand the main idea of the book |
、When you meet new words in reading such kinds of books, you’d better _________.
| A．stop and look them up in a dictionary | B．stop and think them over |
| C．try to guess their meanings from the context | D．have none of them |
According to the passage the best way to read novels, plays and travel books is _____.
| A．to read very slowly | B．to read quickly and not too carefully |
| C．to read very carefully | D．to read very seriously |
The best title for this passage is “___________”.
| A．Read for Pleasure | B．Get on with the Books |
| C．Reading Skills | D．The Importance of Reading |
As people slowly learn to cure diseases, control floods, prevent hunger, and stop wars, fewer people die every year. As a result, the population of the world is becoming larger. In 1925 there were about 2 billion people in the world; today there are over 6 billion.
When the number rises, extra mouths must be fed. New lands must be brought under development, or land already farmed must be made to produce more crops. In some areas the land is so over-developed that it will be difficult to make it provide more crops. In some areas the population is so large that the land is divided into too tiny units to make improvement possible with farming methods. If a large part of this fa
rming population went into industrial work, the land might be farmed much more productively (多产地) with modern methods.
There is now a race for science, technology, and industry to keep the output of food rising faster than the number of people to be fed. New types of crops, which will grow well in bad weather, are being developed, so there are now farms beyond the Arctic Circle in Siberia and North America. Irrigation (灌溉) and dry-farming methods bring poor lands under the plough. Dams hold back the waters of great rivers, which can provide water for the fields in all seasons and provide electric power for new industries. Industrial chemistry provides fertilizer to suit different soils. Every year, some new methods are made to increase or to protect the food of the world. The author says that the world population is increasing because _____.
| A．there are many rich valleys and large fields |
| B．farmers are producing more crops than before |
| C．people are living longer due to better living conditions |
| D．new lands are being made into farmlands |
The author says that in areas with large populations, land might be more productively farmed if _____.
| A．the land was divided into smaller pieces |
| B．people moved into the countryside |
| C．industrial methods were used in farming |
| D．the units of land were much larger |
We are told that there are now f
arms beyond the Arctic Circle. This has been made possible by _____.
| A．growing new types of crops |
| B．irrigation and dry-farming means |
| C．providing fertilizers |
| D．destroying pests and diseases |
Why is the land divided into tiny units in some areas?
| A．There are too many people living there. |
| B．It saves more natural resources there. |
| C．It prevents crops from serious diseases there. |
| D．Farmers can grow various kinds of crops there. |
Why do some people use dams to hold back waters from great rivers?
| A．To develop a new kind of dry-farming methods. |
| B．To prevent crops from floods. |
| C．To provide water and electricity in all seasons. |
| D．To water poor lands in bad weather. |