We discuss the issue of when to help a patient die. Doctors of our generation are not newcomers to this question. Going back to my internship(实习)days, I can remember many patients in pain, sometimes in coma(昏迷), with late, hopeless cancer. For many of them, we wrote an order for heavy medication—morphine(吗啡)by the clock. This was not talked about openly and little was written about it. It was essential, not controversial.
The best way to bring the problem into focus is to describe two patients whom I cared for. The first, formerly a nurse, had an automobile accident. A few days later her lungs seemed to fill up; her heart developed dangerous rhythm disturbances. So there she was: in coma, on a breathing machine, her heartbeat maintained with an electrical device. One day after rounds, my secretary said the husband and son of the patient wanted to see me. They told me their wife and mother was obviously going to die; she was a nurse and had told her family that she never wanted this kind of terrible death, being maintained by machines. I told them that while I respected their view, there was nothing deadly about her situation. The kidney(肾) failure she had was just the kind for which the artificial kidney was most effective. While possibly a bit reassured, they were disappointed. Here was the head surgeon seemingly determined to keep everybody alive, no matter what.
Within a few days the patient's pacemaker(起搏器) could be removed and she awoke from her coma. About six months later, the door of my office opened and in walked a gloriously fit woman. After some cheery words of appreciation, the father and son asked to speak to me alone. As soon as the door closed, both men became quite tearful. All that came out was, “We want you to know how wrong we were.”
The second patient was an 85-year-old lady whose hair caught fire while she was smoking. She arrived with a deep burn; I knew it would surely be deadly. As a remarkable coincidence there was a meeting for discussion going on at the time in medical ethics(道德). The speaker asked me if I had any sort of ethical problem I could bring up for discussion. I described the case and asked the students their opinion. After the discussion, I made a remark that was, when looking back, a serious mistake. I said, "I'll take the word back to the nurses about her and we will talk about it some more before we decide." The instructor and the students were shocked: "You mean this is a real patient?" The teacher of ethics was not accustomed to being challenged by actuality. In any event, I went back and met with the nurses. A day or two later, when she was making no progress and was suffering terribly, we began to back off treatment. Soon she died quietly and not in pain. As a reasonable physician, you had better move ahead and do what you would want done for you. And don't discuss it with the world first. There is a lesson here for everybody. Assisting people to leave this life requires strong judgment and long experience to avoid its misuse.The first patient’s husband and son wanted the doctor_____.
A.to save her life |
B.to end her life |
C.use an artificial kidney |
D.to maintain her life with machines |
In the early days when a patient had got a deadly, hopeless illness, _______.
A.doctors would inject more morphine into the patient to end his life |
B.doctors would turn him away and ask him to go back home and wait for death |
C.doctors would write a new order for their medical treatment to ease their pain |
D.doctors would discuss their treatment plan with the patient and write down the solution |
At the meeting, the author discussed with the students_____.
A.the importance of mercy killing |
B.the relationship between mercy killing and ethics |
C.the case about an old lady |
D.the process to practice mercy killing |
The author suggested that doctors_____ before they assist a patient in killing himself.
A.do what they are wanted to do |
B.discuss with the others about the decision first |
C.be required to do so first by the patient |
D.make sure there is no other choice left |
Through the two patients mentioned in the text, the author thinks that on the issue of helping a patient die, doctors need to be _________.
A.cruel and cautious |
B.experienced and thoughtful |
C.pessimistic and determined |
D.considerate and optimistic |
Is early childhood education really necessary? Early childhood education primarily focuses on learning through playing to develop the child’s physical, sensory, communicational and social development.Early childhood education has become a concern of the government, who pushes poor children to be formally trained before they are old enough for kindergarten.
There are good reasons for the government to push early childhood education.Studies have shown that orphaned children who did not receive good care and education become developmentally delayed causing failure in school, and even in life.Further studies show that poor children who take part in Head Start programs are more prepared for school, less likely to end up in Special Education classes, and are less likely to receive public help or go to prison.
There are also negative parts to putting a child in formal education programs too early.Time Magazine online explains that “the younger the child the less his chances of catching up with first-grade work.” I have personally witnessed many children of my generation who went to Head Start programs become frustrated and bored with school before they finished high school.Yet parents have been sure that the earlier the child starts school, the better off he or she is, so they push to start children earlier.
Actually while early formal education of poor children does show great gains in the early elementary years, studies also show that this head start is really a “false start”, as the gains are lost in middle and high school years.It seems that environment is a bigger factor on life’s success than early education.Head Start programs have not achieved its original goal in closing the achievement gap in poor and middle school children.Perhaps it is time to find other ways to close that gap.The purpose of the government valuing the early childhood education is ________.
A.to develop the children’s communication |
B.to give orphaned children good care and education |
C.to get the children prepared for the kindergarten |
D.to train the children formally and regularly |
According to the studies, which of the following is True?
A.Children with good early education may have a rich life. |
B.The orphaned children are usually unhappy in their life. |
C.Children without early education can do well at school. |
D.Head Start programs are helpful to the poor children. |
The underlined part suggests that _________.
A.the early childhood education is helpless to the child’s grade |
B.it is good for the young children to receive early education |
C.the early education can help the children follow the grade |
D.the younger the children are, the cleverer they will be |
The author’s attitude toward the early childhood education is _________.
A.puzzling | B.negative | C.indifferent | D.approving |
The main idea of the last passage is that __________.
A.the early childhood education is very necessary |
B.Head Start programs have helped the children a lot |
C.environment is the most important to life’s success |
D.better ways should be found to help the poor children |
Sometimes you’ll hear people say that you can’t love others until you love yourself. Sometimes you’ll hear people say that you can’t expect someone else to love you until you love yourself. Either way, you’ve got to love yourself first and this can be tricky. Sure we all know that we’re the apple of our parents’ eyes, and that our Grandmas think we’re great talents and our Uncle Roberts think that we will go to the Olympics. But sometimes it’s a lot harder to think such nice thoughts about ourselves. If you find that believing in yourself is a challenge, it is time you build a positive self-image and learn to love yourself.
Self-image is your own mind’s picture of yourself. This image includes the way you look, the way you act, the way you talk and the way you think. Interestingly, our self-images are often quite different from the images others hold about us. Unfortunately, most of these images are more negative than they should be. Thus changing the way you think about yourself is the key to changing your self-image and your whole world.
The best way to defeat a passive self-image is to step back and decide to stress your successes. That is, make a list if you need to, but write down all of the great things you do every day. Don’t allow doubts to occur in it.
It very well might be that you are experiencing a negative self-image because you can’t move past one flaw or weakness that you see about yourself. Well, roll up your sleeves and make a change of it as your primary task. If you think you’re silly because you aren’t good at math, find a tutor. If you think you’re weak because you can’t run a mile, get to the track and practice. If you think you’re dull because you don’t wear the latest trends, buy a few new clothes. But remember, just because you think it doesn’t mean it’s true.
The best way to get rid of a negative self-image is to realize that your image is far from objective, and to actively convince yourself of your positive qualities. Changing the way you think and working on those you need to improve will go a long way towards promoting a positive self-image. When you can pat(拍) yourself on the back, you’ll know you’re well on your way. Good luck!You need to build a positive self-image when you _________.
A.dare to challenge yourself | B.feel it hard to change yourself |
C.are unconfident about yourself | D.have a high opinion of yourself |
According to the passage, our self-images _________.
A.have positive effects | B.are probably untrue |
C.are often changeable | D.have different functions |
How should you change your self-image according to the passage?
A.To keep a different image of others. | B.To make your life successful. |
C.To understand your own world. | D.To change the way you think. |
What is the passage mainly about?
A.How to prepare for your success. | B.How to face challenges in your life. |
C.How to build a positive self-image. | D.How to develop your good qualities. |
Who are the intended readers of the passage?
A.Parents. | B.Adolescents. | C.Educators. | D.People in general. |
I used to watch her from my kitchen window. She seemed so small as she muscled her way through the crowd of boys on the playground. The school was across the street from our home and I would often watch the kids as they played during break. I remember the first day I saw her playing basketball. I watched in wonder as she ran circles around the other kids. She managed to shoot jump shots just over their heads and into the net. The boys always tried to stop her but no one could. I began to notice her at other times, basketball in hand, playing alone.
One day I asked her why she practiced so much. Without a moment of hesitation she said, “I want to go to college. The only way I can go is to get a scholarship. I am going to play college basketball. I want to be the best. My Daddy told me if the dream is big enough, the facts don’t count.” Well, I had to give it to her—she was determined. I watched her through those junior high years and into high school. Every week, she led her school team to victory.
One day in her senior year, I saw her sitting in the grass, head in her arms. I walked across the street and sat down in the cool grass beside her. Quietly I asked what was wrong. “Oh, nothing,” came a soft reply, “I am just too short.” The coach told her that at 5’5” she would probably never get to play for a top ranked team—much less offered a scholarship—so she should stop dreaming about college. She was heartbroken and I felt my own throat tighten as I sensed her disappointment. I asked her if she had talked to her dad about it yet. She told me that her father said those coaches were wrong. They just did not understand the power of a dream. He told her that if she truly wanted a scholarship and that nothing could stop her except one thing — her own attitude.
The next year, as she and her team went to the Northern California Championship game, she was offered a scholarship and on the college team. She was going to get the college education that she had dreamed of.The author was probably the girl’s.
A.brother or sister | B.friend | C.mother | D.teacher |
Why was the girl heartbroken ?
A.She was considered too short to be a top player. |
B.Her coach stopped her training because of her height. |
C.She couldn’t be on a college basketball team. |
D.She wouldn’t be admitted by an ideal college. |
We can learn from the passage that.
A.her family wouldn’t like to pay her college fee |
B.her father forced her to play basketball in collage |
C.being a top basketball player can win you a scholarship for college |
D.she wouldn’t like to turn to his father for help when in difficulty |
Which word can best describe her father ?
A.Encouraging. | B.Optimistic. | C.Stubborn. | D.Cruel. |
Which proverb best matches the story ?
A.Practice makes perfect. | B.Rome was not built in a day. |
C.Where there is a will, there is a way. | D.Pride comes before a fall. |
It’s interesting that the arrival of snow has effect on people in different countries. For some countries it is an important happening to celebrate each year, while for others a catastrophe(灾害) or even a wonder.
But there are countries between these two kinds that normally expect snow some time over the winter months, but never receive snow regularly or in the same quantities every year. Britain is one of them, for which the arrival of snow quite simply causes problems. Within hours of the first snowfalls, however light, roads are blocked, trains and buses have to stop in the middle of the way. Normal communication is affected as well: telephone calls become difficult and the post immediately takes more time than usual. And almost within hours, there are also certain shortages----bread, vegetables and other things-----not because all these things can no longer be produced or sent to shops, but mainly because people are frightened and go out and store up with food and so on…just for fear that something bad should happen.
But why does snow have this effect? After all, the Swiss, the Austrians and the Canadians don‘t have such problems. It is simple because there is not enough planning and preparation. We need money to buy equipment to deal with snow and ice. To keep the roads clear, for example, requires snow-ploughs(扫雪机) and machines to spread salt. The reason why a country like Britain does not buy snow-ploughs is that they are used for a few days in any one year, and the money could be more useful in other things such as hospital, education, helping the old and so on..
According to the writer, Britain is a country ________.
A.which has regular snow | B.which is not well prepared for snow |
C.for which snow is a catastrophe | D.for which snow is a wonder |
After a few hours’ snowing there are often some shortages of food because ______.
A. shops have closed down B. people buy as much as they can
B. farmers cannot produce any more D. people eat more vegetables in winter
The words "two kinds" in the passage mean the countries ______.
A.which have weather as yearly happening to celebrate or as rare(少见) weather |
B.which either have heavy snow or light snow |
C.to which snow either causes problems or no problems |
D.which either have snow-ploughs or no snow-ploughs |
The greatest recent social changes have been in the lives of women. During the twentieth century there has been a remarkable shortening of the time of a woman’s life spent in caring for children. A woman marrying at the end of the nineteenth century would probably have been in her middle twenties, and would be likely to have seven or eight children, of whom four or five lived till they were five years old. By the time the youngest was fifteen, the mother would have been in her early fifties and would expect to live a further twenty years, during which health made it unusual for her to get paid work. Today women marry younger and have fewer children. Usually a woman‘s youngest child will be fifteen when she is forty-five and can be expected to live another thirty-five years and is likely to take paid work until retirement(退休) at sixty. Even while she has the care of children, her work is lightened by modern living conditions.
This important change in women’s life-pattern has only recently begun to have its full effect on women‘s economic position. Even a few years ago most girls left schools at the first chance, and most of them took a full-time job. However, when they married, they usually left work at once and never returned to it. Today the school-leaving age is sixteen, many girls stay at school after that age, and though women usually marry younger, more married women stay at least until shortly before their first child is born. Very many more afterwards return to full or part-time work. Such changes have led to a new relationship in marriage, with the husband accepting a greater share of the duties and satisfactions of family life, and with the both husband and wife sharing more equally in providing the money, and running the home, according to the abilities and interests of each of them.
According to the passage, around the year 1900 most women married ________.
A. at about twenty-five B. in their early fifties
C as soon as possible after they were fifteen
D. at any age from fifteen to forty-five
We are told that in a common family about 1900 _________.
A.many children died before they were five |
B.seven or eight children lived to be more than five |
C.the youngest child would be fifteen |
D.four or five children died when they were five |
When she was over fifty, the late nineteenth-century mother _________.
A.would be healthy enough to take up paid jobs |
B.was usually expected to die fairly soon |
C.would expect to work until she died |
D.was unlikely to find a job even if she wanted one |
According to the passage, the women of today usually _________.
A.marry instead of getting paid work | B.marry before they are twenty-five |
C.have more children under fifteen | D.have too few children |