Once Dr. Mellinkoff invited me to join him at the hospital to discuss interesting cases with his students. The case at hand was a Guatemalan man, aged 34, who had a fever and many other medical problems. His condition was not improving, and there was not much hope he would live.
Dr. Mellinkoff asked to see the patient. He introduced himself in Spanish and, in a very gentle voice, asked how he felt. The patient smiled and said everything was all right. Then the doctor asked if he was able to eat. The patient said that he had no desire to eat.
“Are you getting food you like?”
The patient said nothing.
“Do you get the kind of food you have at home?”
The answer was no.
The doctor put his hand on the man’s shoulder and his voice was very soft.
“If, you had food that you liked, would you eat it?”
“Yes, yes.” the patient said.
The change in the patient’s appearance couldn’t have been more obvious. Nothing was said, but it was easy to tell that a message had been sent and had also been received.
Later, the doctor asked why the Guatemalan man wasn’t getting food he could eat. One of the students said, “We all know how difficult it is to get the kitchen to make special meals.”
“Suppose,” the doctor replied, “you felt a certain medicine was absolutely necessary but that our hospital didn’t carry it, would you accept defeat or would you insist the hospital meet your request?”
“I would probably insist,” the student said.
“Very well,” the doctor said. “You might want to try the same method in the kitchen. It won’t be easy, but I can help you. Meanwhile, let’s get some food inside this man as fast as possible, and stay with it. Or he’ll be killed by hunger. By the way, there must be someone among you who can speak Spanish. If we want to make real progress, we need to be able to talk with him. ”
Three weeks later, Dr. Mellinkoff told me that the Guatemalan man had left the hospital under his own power. It takes more than medicine to help sick people; you also have to talk to them and make them comfortable.The patient had no desire to eat because __________.
A.he was not hungry |
B.he was seriously ill |
C.he was given special meals |
D.he was not satisfied with the food |
According to the passage, we can conclude that __________.
A.the patient was from another country. |
B.the patient’s illness was caused by hunger |
C.Dr. Mellinkoff performed an operation on the patient |
D.the hospital failed to provide the right medicine for the patient |
Which of the following words can be used to describe Dr. Mellinkoff ?
A.Cold. | B.Considerate. |
C.Curious. | D.Confident. |
What do you think Dr. Mellinkoff wanted to tell his students in this case?
A.Doctors should know their patients’ real problems. |
B.Doctors should be able to speak foreign languages. |
C.Doctors should try to improve their medical skills. |
D.Doctors should give more medicine to patients. |
Coincidences happen all the time to ordinary people, but the following events are perhaps some of the strangest of them all.
1. In the 19th century, the famous writer, Edgar Allan Poe, wrote a book called The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket. It was about four survivors of a shipwreck (船只失事) who were in an open boat for many days before three of them decided to kill and eat the cabin boy whose name was Richard Parker. Some years later, in 1884, the boat Mignonette sank, and only four survivors were left in an open boat for many days. Finally the three older members killed and ate the cabin boy. The name of the cabin boy was Richard Parker.
2. In Monza, Italy, King Umberto I went to a small restaurant for dinner. When the owner took King Umberto I’s order, the King noticed that he and the restaurant owner were doubles, in face and in build. Both men began discussing the resemblance between each other and found many more similarities. Both men were born in the same place, on the same day, of the same year (March 14, 1844, Turin, Italy). On the day that the King married Queen Margherita, the restaurant owner had married a lady named Margherita. The restaurant owner opened his restaurant on the same day that King Umberto I was crowned(加冕) King of Italy. On July 29, 1900, King Umberto I was informed that the restaurant owner had died that day in a shooting accident, and as he expressed his regret, someone in the crowd killed him!
3. Mark Twain was a popular American author who wrote famous books such as The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Mark Twain was born on the day of the appearance of Halley’s Comet(哈雷彗星) in 1835, and died on the day of its next appearance in 1910. He himself predicted this in 1909, when he said: “I came in with Halley’s Comet in1835. It is coming again next year, and I expect to go out with it.”In The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket, _________.
A.the boat was named Mignonette |
B.the ship sank after the cabin boy’s death |
C.three people in all eventually survived the shipwreck |
D.Richard Parker was unfriendly to the other survivors |
Whose story is related to astronomy?_________.
A.Mark Twain’s | B.Edgar Allan Poe’s |
C.King Umberto I’s | D.Queen Margherita’s |
The author wrote the text with a feeling of __________.
A.worry | B.regret |
C.amazement | D.satisfaction |
What’s the best title for the text?_________.
A.Unexplained deaths |
B.Terrible events in the world |
C.Well-known people in history |
D.Strangest coincidences in history |
Most nights I lie in bed, ready for an escape from myself, yet a streaming video of everything I ate, how I exercised, the activities of the day won’t stop playing in my mind.
I pause. I breathe. I try to relax once again, but it doesn’t work.
When I’m not exercising — even if I’ve already exercised that day — I’m consumed with anxiety about my next workout. Will something come up and make me miss the gym? What about holidays when the gym is closed?
Exercise has become a disease; it even disguises (伪装,假装) itself as the cure. If I don’t have it as an escape, then what’s left to hold me together? Working out feels like the only way to calm myself, but as soon as I leave the gym or finish a walk, the whole cycle starts over again.
As you might have guessed by now, I suffer from depression and OCD (强迫症). I’m a highly-educated adult woman who knows the risks of this behavior, and yet I can’t stop.
As a society, we’re told over and over that it’s important to exercise. That’s what makes it so easy to keep this addiction a secret; it’s not as obvious as lighting up a cigarette. You can continue to feed your addiction under the guise that you’re just being “healthy”. I not only have to fight the nonstop thoughts in my head but also the “more exercise is better” messages I receive from the media every day.
For me, exercise has become a drug, which is a way to numb the pain I might feel. I wonder what it would be like to “have the problem” of not wanting to go to the gym. It still feels very far away.
Yet I know I can be stronger than this. I can break the cycle I’m in. I can tell my story so as to give up a piece of the secrecy that keeps me sick.
Because no, you don’t want my problem. And finally, neither do I.When the author goes to bed, she___________.
A.can’t breathe normally | B.can’t fall asleep |
C.always feels hungry | D.always feels tired |
The underlined word “it” in paragraph 4 probably refers to ___________.
A.the gym | B.disease | C.exercise | D.the cure |
What is special about the addition to exercise?
A.It is popular among highly-educated people. |
B.It is widely reported by the mass media. |
C.It does little harm to health. |
D.it is not easily discovered. |
We know from the text that the author ____________.
A.is emotionless |
B.lives far away from the gym |
C.is seriously ill |
D.has difficulty in keeping secrets |
Thinking about taking a year out before going to university?Check out your gap year choices here and decide if it’s the right decision for you…
What is it?
It’s a year out between finishing senior high school and starting university in which you can travel, work and generally do mind-broadening stuff you will never forget.
I don’t want to travel, but I don’t know what I want to do at university.
You will have a good three months between finishing your A Levels and university Clearing (when last-minute vacancies (空缺) on courses for the coming academic year are advertised): surely enough time to decide what to do. You don’t need to take a year for that.
I need to take some money before starting university.
Fair enough. But don’t get comfortable and decide not to get a full-time job. Spending a year on income support (收入补贴) will be depressing; you’ll have nothing to say when future employers ask what you did in your gap year, and you’ll have to put up with smug (得意的) post-gap year students comparing notes when you start university.
I’d love to travel, but I can’t afford it.
Most gap year students work for the first six months and then travel, using the money they’ve earned in the second six months.
I’m scared.
Try not to let fear of the unknown put you off seeing the world. Earth is a big planet, but when you travel it seems much smaller (even the remotest countries have email access).The potential readers of the text are _________.
A.parents | B.high school students |
C.university students | D.teachers |
Most students get money for their gap year trip_____.
A.from their parents |
B.by borrowing from their friends |
C.from the government |
D.by working themselves |
The last paragraph can be regarded as a(n) ___________.
A.encouragement | B.warning |
C.suggestion | D.invitation |
Sleepwalking is a sleep disorder. Your child will rise from bed and walk or engage in other activities that they would normally do when they are awake. Their eyes will be open but they will appear to be in a dream-like state, and will probably not answer when you talk to them, although they may carry out conversations. Sleepwalking can last a few seconds , a few minutes, or more.
Sleepwalking can be an indication that certain parts of the brain may not be relaxing properly at bedtime. It can be caused by illness or fever, tiredness, stress or anxiety. It is thought to occur in the beginning, slow-wave stages of non-rapid eye movement sleep before dream sleep. It may be related to the lack of magnesium (镁) , and it is very possible that hormonal(荷尔蒙的)changes in body could cause it. Certainly a child is more likely to be a sleepwalker if one of his parents suffered, too .
Sleepwalking itself is not dangerous and is generally not a sign of any more worrying problems. But if your child sleepwalks regularly, you have to take safety measures to make sure that he doesn't hurt himself while sleepwalking. Makes sure that any doors can't be opened by a child, and lock doors to the cellar, kitchen and other dangerous places. Check each night before lights go out for sharp objects or, indeed , anything on the floor which your child could trip over or hurt himself on.
A child may sleepwalk once and never sleepwalk again. Others may sleepwalk once a month or so. Still others may sleepwalk almost nightly. If you are worried you should consult your doctor. What does the second paragraph mainly tell us?
A.The concept of sleepwalking. |
B.The causes of sleepwalking. |
C.Some ways to help sleepwalking. |
D.The behaviors during sleepwalking. |
Which of the following is true according to the passage?
A.Sleepwalking itself is not dangerous. |
B.Children who sleepwalk may answer when you talk to them. |
C.If your child sleepwalks regularly, you can just leave him alone. |
D.Sleepwalking is related to the lack of sleep. |
It can be inferred from the passage that____.
A.sleepwalking may be passed down in a family |
B.drugs that could cure sleepwalking have been developed |
C.during a normal sleep, a person never opens his eyes |
D.most doctors consider sleepwalking as a serious problem |
As the capital of China's Shaanxi Province, Xi'an's long history was properly summed up by our English-speaking guide: "If Xi'an is the grandmother of cities, Beijing is a youth and Shanghai is just a baby in the womb. "
However, it was not until 1974, following the chance discovery of the Army of Terracotta Warriors by well-digging farmers, that Xi'an was once again pushed onto the international map. Three decades later, the local government is pouring funds into the tourism sector. Ancient monuments and museums are being restored, and various copies of Buddhist and Tang heritage are being constructed to help Chinese tourists rediscover their national heritage.
One of those ancient monuments is the Big Wild Goose Pagoda-Xi'an's most sacred (神圣的) monument-which was built in 652 by the monk Xuanzang ,who travelled across India for 18 years and returned with a precious collection of Buddhist sacred texts. In 1966,the Red Guards burnt the pagoda's scriptures, silk wall hangings and other relics in a bonfire that raged all night. But that destruction has largely been forgotten as tourists flock to the newly restored pagoda. The only original remainders-the empty shell of the seven-storey pagoda-light up at night, standing out in the city's skyline.
Xi'an is also displaying the glories of the ancient Tang Dynasty, with a 165-acre Tang Paradise Theme Park that is visited by flocks of tourist groups. Although every bit of this Tang heritage is recreated, it is artistically pleasing, landscaped with ponds and lakes, classical gardens, bridges, palaces and pavilions. Explore the vast area on a golf cart, hopping on and off to see shortened operas from the Tang Dynasty days, laser shows on the lake, highly structured man-made waterfalls, as well as murals and statues of historical figures ,philosophers and poets.
A 36km drive northeast takes you to Xi'an's most famous attraction, the Army of Terracotta Warriors. They were made to order in 221BC by the first emperor of China, Qin Shi Huangdi, who used the forced labour of 700,000 subjects to create a mausoleum(陵庙) guarded by an entire army.From the passage we can learn that a large sum of money of the local government in Xi'an is being ploughed into .
A.restoring the monuments |
B.restoring the Pagoda |
C.tourism industry |
D.exploring the history |
How many historical sites in Xi'an have been referred to in the passage?
A.Three. | B.Four. | C.One. | D.Six. |
What can we learn from the fourth paragraph about the Tang Paradise Theme Park?
A.Visitors are pleased with the survivals from the Tang Dynasty. |
B.The natural waterfalls in it are very attractive. |
C.It is totally recreated but is artistically pleasant. |
D.Visitors can appreciate the full Tang Dynasty operas. |
Which of the following can be the best title for the text?
A.Make a visit to ancient sites at once. |
B.China's ancient capital rises again. |
C.Travel to the Army of Terracotta Warriors. |
D.Take a view in the modern city. |