George Eberhardt turned 107 last month, and scientists would love to know how he and other older folks like him made it that far. So he's going to hand over some of his DNA.
He's one of 100 centenarians(百岁老人) taking part in a project that examines some of the oldest citizens with one of the newest scientific tools: whole-genome sequencing(全基因组测试), the deciphering of a person's complete collection of DNA.
Scientists think DNA from very old healthy people could offer clues to how they have lived so long. And that could one day lead to medicines to help the rest of us stay disease-free longer.
"It's very hard to get to 105 without some genetic advantages," says Dr. Thomas Perls, a geriatrics(老年医学) expert at Boston University. Dr.Perls is helping find centenarians for the Archon Genomics X Prize competition. The X Prize Foundation, best known for a spaceflight competition, is offering $10 million in prize money to researchers who decipher the complete DNA code from 100 people older than 100. The contest will be judged on accuracy, completeness and the speed and cost of sequencing.
Mr. Eberhardt played and taught tennis until he was 94and says he's participating in the X Prize project because he's interested in science and technology. It's not clear his genes will reveal much. Nobody else in his extended family reached 100, and he thinks only a couple reached 90, he said in a telephone interview.
So why does he think he lived so long? He attributes it to 70 years of marriage to his wife, Marie. She in turn cites his "intense interest in so many things" over a lifetime, from building radios as a child to pursuing a career in electronics research.
But scientists believe there's more to it, and they want to use genome sequencing to investigate. Dr. Richard Cawthon of the University of Utah, who is seeking longevity genes by other means, says it may turn up genetic features that protect against multiple diseases or that slow the process of aging in general.
| A．Separating. | B．Interpreting. |
| C．Gathering. | D．Comparing. |
| A．How many genes are studied |
| B．How precise the sequencing is |
| C．How fast the research is finished |
| D．The number of researchers |
| A．what the Archon Genomics X prize competition is about |
| B．the significance of studying the genes that lead to longevity |
| C．how whole-genome sequencing is applied to the study of genes |
| D．the genetic advantages the centenarians have |
| A．He doesn’t have any genetic advantages. |
| B．Most of his family have been long-lived. |
| C．His genes don’t reveal much about why he has lived so long. |
| D．He enjoyed doing electronics research. |
| A．Comparing One Hundred Centenarians |
| B．Who Will Win the Archon Genomics X Prize Competition? |
| C．A New Technology--- Whole –Genome Sequencing |
| D．Is the Secret to a Long Life in the DNA of Centenarians? |
51 ．She described all the things she had to do －one was to make her bed－from the moment she woke up until she flew out of the door for work．I suggested she experiment by not making her bed for two weeks．She was shocked, probably thinking I’d been raised by wolves in a forest． 52 ．
Two weeks later she went into my office beaming．She had left her bed unmade for the first time in 42 years－and nothing bad had happened．“And you know what?” she said．“I don’t dry my dishes anymore, either．”
53 ．One was discovering that she had choices in her life that she had never seen before．The other was giving herself permission to be less that perfect．This story shows an important principle （原理） about managing time: No one can do it all．Each of us has to make choices and accept trade – offs．The problem is, many people choose in ways that put themselves and their health last．They take better care of their houses and cars than they do of themselves． 54 .
So what is the solution? There’s an easy way．Decide what you want in your life, and put that first．On a daily basis, that should include regular meals, enough sleep and time with your family．Exercise, leisure, friendships and hobbies should also be regular aspects of life． 55 ．The choice is yours: whatever makes you feel good about yourself and your life．Take a nap（小憩）．Take a walk．Take time to play the piano．Stop bringing your briefcase home from the office．Stop keeping your house as clean as your mother kept hers．Fill more of your time with want – to – dos instead of have – to – dos．
| A．This woman had made two major breakthroughs （突破）． |
| B．Above all, you needn’t do anything for yourself regularly． |
| C．They put everyone else’s needs ahead of their own． |
| D．However, she went along with my idea． |
E．Most people do not take time to relax themselves．
F．The point is to do something for yourself every day．
G．A patient came to see me about the stress in her life．
The pupils of the remote Beau-Roc primary school in Haiti are chanting (singing the same words again and again)．One of them plays a guitar made from an empty oil tin．Their headmistress, Emile Jean-Noel, is one of the few women school headteachers in the country．
Today, over 70% of Haitian population live without proper food, water, schools, or housing． To reduce the hunger that prevents learning and to encourage parents to send their children to school, meals are provided by the World Food Programme．
"We are so cut off that we have many difficulties," comments Emile, adding that finding chalk, school books and other materials is practically impossible．Emile tries to encourage people around her to make use of available resources．Her efforts are bearing fruit．One of her successes was convincing local women to contribute to their children' s schooling and increase their income by selling embroidery（刺绣） and other handicrafts．
Recent political instability（不稳定）has meant that the country has not invested （投资） in education for ten years．Only 44% of children go to school and less than half of them finish primary school. Less than a third of these children go on to secondary school．In rural areas it is not rare to find 17 and 18 year olds in primary school- Beau-Roc has only 4 teachers for 260 pupils．Emile works constantly to improve her pupils' environment．Under her direction, a local worker is now constructing a store house for the food delivered regularly by the WFP．
Not only is Emile' s salary small, but she receives it irregularly．For her, transport is a real headache．She lives five kilometers away and has to take the tap tap, a privately-owned bus, costing more than she can afford．
"The decision to be a rural teacher in Haiti should not be taken lightly" , Emile comments． "With all the sacrifices and risks it requires, only those who are really cut out for teaching should do it．" However, Emile loves her job．"I always feel at home with the children and, because the parents understand what I'm doing, I try to give my best．"Which of the following is extremely difficult for Beau-Roc primary school?
| A．Teaching the women how to make embroidery and other handicrafts． |
| B．Persuading local women to care about their children' s education． |
| C．Encouraging people around to use those available resources． |
| D．Finding chalk, school books and other materials． |
In the last paragraph, "those who are really cut out for teaching" refer to people who are _____．
| A．dismissed from teaching | B．unfamiliar with teaching |
| C．qualified for teaching | D．cautious about teaching |
What topic is presented in this passage?
| A．Hardship for teachers． | B．Devotion to education． |
| C．Politics and children． | D．Love and beauty． |
In many cultures white is often associated with something positive．A white-collar job, for instance, is the kind of job many people look for, working with your brain and not your hands．
White has a clean and pure image．That is why doctors, dentists, and nurses usually wear white uniforms．Babies are dressed in white at baptisms（洗礼）and brides wear white wedding gowns at weddings．White in these cases is the symbol of innocence or purity．
Sometimes white is used in expressions that are not good．“Whitewash” is one such expression．At first, “whitewash” meant to paint over something with white paint to make it look better．However, it means something different today: to hide or to cover up mistakes or failures．
A “white elephant” is another example of white used in a negative way．In ancient Thailand, a white elephant was regarded as a sacred animal, but it was very expensive to keep．The kings of those days presented a white elephant to the people they wanted to ruin．Once they received this holy, royal animal as a gift, they were not allowed to sell or kill it．Today, a “white elephant” means something that is big, useless, and unwanted．In America, when people want to get rid of their furniture or clothes, they often have a “white elephant sale”．
The text is mainly about________．
| A．the meanings of white in English culture | B．the history of some English idioms |
| C．some interesting customs in English culture | D．some useful English words and expressions |
Which expression has an historical background ?
| A．White-wash． | B．White-collar． |
| C．White elephant． | D．White elephant sale． |
In which statement does “white” have a negative meaning?
| A．A boy is dressed in white at baptisms． | B．A bride wears a white wedding gown． |
| C．A man whitewashes his crime． | D．A girl finds a white collar job． |
The author develops the text mainly by ______．
| A．analyzing its cause and effect | B．providing typical examples |
| C．comparing different ideas | D．following the time order |
For a writer, there is hardly any greater honor than winning the Nobel Prize for literature.
And for a woman writer, claiming the prize is even harder, for only eight women once won it. Austria’s Elfriede Jelinek is the ninth and the first since 1996.
The Stockholm-based Swedish Academy announced last Thursday that Jelinek won this year’s Nobel Prize in literature. She is recognized for her socially critical(批判的) novels and plays.
Jelinek, 57, made her literary debut (初次露面) in 1967. She has written plays, novels and poetry. She is best known for her autobiographical 1983 novel “The Piano Teacher”, made into a movie in 2001.
The basic theme of her work is the inability of women to live as people beyond the roles and personalities traditionally expected of them. Her characters struggle to lead lives not normally acceptable in society. “The nature of Jelinek’s texts is often hard to define. They shift between prose(散文) and poetry and songs, they contain theatrical scenes and film script,” said the academy.
The Nobel Prize was founded by Swedish inventor Alfred Nobel. Nobel died in 1896 and left his fortune of about US $920 million to a fund to honor people who have helped other human beings. This year each prize is worth US $13 million. The underlined word “them” in the last second paragraph refers to _______.
| A．roles | B．people | C．texts | D．women |
Elfrede Jelinek won the Nobel Prize just because _______.
| A．she was an Austrian woman writer |
| B．she wrote socially critical novels and plays |
| C．her novel “The Piano Teacher” was made into a movie |
| D．the nature of her texts is hard to define. |
Which of the following about the Nobel Prize is TRUE?
| A．It is harder for a woman writer to win than a man writer. |
| B．The total prize every year was $920 million. |
| C．Women writers were not awarded until 1996. |
| D．Only eight women writers won the prize since 1996. |
This passage is most likely taken from _______.
| A．a travel magazine | B．a history book | C．a newspaper | D．an advertisement |
A few days ago my wife sent me out to buy something. When I came home, I handed(交给) her a paper bag and said, “Here are the apples you wanted.” She looked in the bag, and then she looked at me. “I told you,” she said slowly, “to buy some eggs.”
I felt worried about my absent-mindedness, so I went to see a doctor. He was a very kind man. “I have seen many people like you. It’s nothing to worry about,” he said. “If you know you are absent-minded, you are all right. But if you do not know you’re absent-minded, you may be really in trouble.”
“Many famous people were absent-minded,” the doctor told me. “Thomas Edison(爱迪生)was standing in line(排队) one day to pay his taxes(税). When he arrived at the window, he found that he had forgotten his own name. He had to ask the man who was behind him to tell him who he was.”
I felt much better and got up to leave. “Thank you, doctor,” I said. “How much do I have to pay you?”
“Ten dollars for the check-up(检查),” the doctor said.
“But doctor, I did not have a check-up!”
For a moment the doctor looked puzzled. Then he said, “Oh, yes, it was the patient before you who had a check-up. How absent-minded I am!”It can be inferred from Paragraph 1 that when the author’s wife heard what her husband told her, she was ______.
| A．excited | B．surprised | C．sad | D．proud |
The doctor took Edison’s story for example ______.
| A．to show absent-mindedness is common among people |
| B．because he liked telling stories |
| C．to make the author laugh |
| D．to make fun of Edison |
The underlined word “absent-mindedness” in the second paragraph probably means ______.
| A．a feeling of anger |
| B．a feeling of sadness |
| C．an emotion (情绪) of excitement |
| D．a trouble in which people often forget this or that |
According to the passage, who was (were) absent-minded?
| A．Only the author. | B．The author’s wife. |
| C．The author and the doctor. | D．The doctor alone. |