Unlike chemists and physicists, who usually do their experiments using machines, biologists and medical researchers have to use living things like rats. But there are three Nobel prize-winning scientists who actually chose to experiment on themselves – all in the name of science, reported The Telegraph.
1. Werner Forssmann (Nobel prize winner in 1956)
Forssmann was a German scientist. He studied how to put a pipe inside the heart to measure the pressure inside and decide whether a patient needs surgery.
Experiments had been done on horses before, so he wanted to try with human patients. But it was not permitted because the experiment was considered too dangerous.
Not giving up, Forssmann decided to experiment on himself. He anaesthetized (麻醉) his own arm and made a cut, putting the pipe 30 centimeters into his vein (静脉). He then climbed two floors to the X-ray room before pushing the pipe all the way into his heart.
2. Barry Marshall (Nobel prize winner in 2005)
Most doctors in the mid-20th century believed that gastritis was down to stress, spicy food or an unusually large amount of stomach acid. But in 1979 an Australian scientist named Robin Warren found that the disease might be related to a bacteria (细菌) called Helicobacter pylori.
So he teamed up with his colleague, Barry Marshall, to continue the study. When their request to experiment on patients was denied, Marshall bravely drank some of the bacteria. Five days later, he lost his appetite and soon was vomiting each morning – he indeed had gastritis.
3. Ralph Steinman (Nobel prize winner in 2011)
This Canadian scientist discovered a new type of immune system cell called the dendritic cell. He believed that it had the ability to fight against cancer.
Steinman knew he couldn’t yet use his method to treat patients. So in 2007, when doctors told him that he had cancer and that it was unlikely for him to live longer than a year, he saw an opportunity.
With the help of his colleagues, he gave himself three different vaccines based on his research and a total of eight experimental therapies (疗法). Even though Steinman eventually died from his cancer, he lived four and a half years, much longer than doctors had said he would.The passage is mainly about _________.
| A．some dangerous experiments that Nobel prize winners did on themselves |
| B．difficulties that scientists went through in order to make important discoveries |
| C．the reasons why some scientists chose to experiment on themselves |
| D．three Nobel prize winners who did experiments on themselves |
Which of the following is TRUE according to the article?
| A．Forssmann’s experiment ended in failure. |
| B．Forssmann managed to do his experiment on different kinds of animals. |
| C．Barry Marshall succeeded by drinking some Helicobacter pylori. |
| D．Barry Marshall’s experiment on himself confirmed that most doctors’ belief about gastritis was correct. |
From the text, we can conclude that Ralph Steinman _________.
| A．discovered a new type of cancer cell called the dendritic cell |
| B．tried different therapies containing the dendritic cell on himself |
| C．knew that he himself would have cancer and die from it |
| D．believed that he was better than doctors at treating cancer |
About 21,000 young people in 17 American States don’t attend classes in school buildings. Instead, they receive their elementary (初等) and high school education by working at home on computers . The Center for Education Reform says the United States has 67 public “cyberschools,” and that is about twice as many as two years ago.
The money for students to attend a cyberschool comes from the governments of the states where they live. Some educators say cyberschools receive money that should support traditional public schools . They also say it is difficult to know if students are learning well.
Other educators praise this new form of education for letting students work at their own speed. These people say cyberschools help students who were unhappy or unsuccessful in traditional schools . They say learning at home by computers ends long bus rides for children who live far from school.
Whatever the judgment of cyberschools , they are getting more and more popular.
For example , a new cyberschool called Commonwealth Connections Academy will take in students this fall. It will serve children in the state of Pennsylvania from ages five through thirteen.
Children get free equipment for their online education. This includes a computer, a printer, books and technical services. Parents and students talk with teachers by telephones or by sending emails through their computers when necessary.
Students at cyberschools usually do not know one another. But 56 such students who finished studies at Western Pennsylvania Cyber Charter school recently met for the first time. They were guests of honor at their graduation.What do we know from the text about students of a cyberschool?
| A．They have to take long bus rides to school. |
| B．They study at home rather than in classrooms. |
| C．They receive money from traditional public schools. |
| D．They do well in traditional school programs. |
What is a problem with cyberschools?
| A．Their equipment costs a lot of money. |
| B．They get little support from the state government |
| C．It is hard to know students’ progress in learning. |
| D．The students find it hard to make friends. |
Cyberschools are getting popular because
| A．they are less expensive for students |
| B．their students can work at their own speed |
| C．their graduates are more successful in society |
| D．they serve students in a wider age range |
We can infer that the author of the text is _________.
| A．unprejudiced(无偏见的) in his description of cryberschools . |
| B．excited about the future of cryberschools |
| C．doubtful about the quality of cryberschools |
| D．disappointed at the development of cryberschools. |
For eighty four days old Santiago had not caught a single fish. At first a young boy, Manolin, had shared his bad fortune, but after the fortieth luckless day the boy’s father told his son to go in another boat. From that time on, Santiago worked alone. The boy loved the old fisherman and always helped him with money and food. Usually, they would talk about the fish they had taken in luckier times or about American baseball after supper, while at night, alone in his cottage, Santiago dreamed of lions on the beaches of Africa, where he had gone years before. He no longer dreamed of his dead wife.
On the eighty-fifth day, Santiago set off to fish before dawn. Two of his baits(饵) were fresh tunas(金枪鱼) the boy had given him, as well as sardines(沙丁鱼) to cover his hooks. Then he set his lines which went straight down into deep dark water.
As the sun rose he saw other boats in toward shore. A bird showed him where dolphin were chasing some flying fish. This time Santiago saw tuna jumping in the sunlight. A small one took the hook on his line. Pulling the fish aboard, the old man thought it a good fortune.
Toward noon a marlin, a common fish in the sea, started eating the bait which was one hundred meters down. Gently the old man played the fish, a big one, as he knew from the weight on the line. At last he struck to settle the hook. The fish did not come out of the surface. Instead, it began to pull the boat to the northwest. The old man followed it. Although he was alone and no longer strong, he had his skill and knew many tricks. He waited patiently for the fish to be tired .
It was cold after the sunset. When something took one of his remaining baits, he cut the line with his knife. Once the marlin leaned suddenly, pulling Santiago forward on his face and cutting his cheek. By dawn his left hand was cramped(抽筋的). The fish had headed northward; there was no land in sight. Hungry, he cut pieces from the tuna and chewed them slowly.
That morning the fish jumped. Seeing it, Santiago knew he had hooked the biggest marlin he had ever seen. Then the fish went down and turned toward the east. Santiago drank a little water from the bottle during the hot afternoon.
Close to nightfall a dolphin took the small hook he had rebaited. He lifted it aboard, careful. After he had rested, he cut meat from the dolphin and kept also the two flying fish he found in its stomach. That night he slept. He awoke to feel the line running through his fingers as the fish jumped. Feeding line slowly, he tried to tire the marlin. After the fish slowed its run, he washed his cut hands in sea water and ate one of the flying fish. At sunrise the marlin began to circle. Faint, he worked to bring the big fish nearer with each turn. Almost exhausted, he finally drew his big fish alongside and drove in the harpoon(鱼叉). The fish was two feet longer than the boat. No fish like it had ever been seen in Havana harbor.
An hour later, he sighted the first shark, a fierce Mako, and it came in fast to chase after the dead marlin. The old man struck the shark with his harpoon. The Mako rolled and sank, carrying the harpoon with it and leaving the marlin bloody. He knew the smell would spread. Watching, he saw two sharks closing in. He struck at one with his knife and watched it sliding down into deep water. The other he killed while it tore at the flesh of the marlin. When the third appeared, he thrust(刺) it with the knife. The other sharks came at sunset. At first he tried to beat them with the tiller(舵柄) from the boat, but his hands were bleeding and there were too many in the sea. In the darkness, as he steered toward the harbor of Havana, he heard them hitting the boat again and again. But the old man thought only of his steering and his great tiredness. He had gone out too far and the sharks had beaten him. He knew they would leave him nothing but the stripped skeleton of the big marlin.
All lights were out when he sailed into the little harbor and beached his boat. He could just make out the white backbone and the upstanding tail of the fish. Once he fell under their weight and lay patiently until he could gather his strength to go on. In his cottage he fell on his bed and went to sleep. The above story is adapted from __________.
| A．Treasure Island | B．The Adventures Of Tom Sawyer |
| C．The Old Man And The Sea | D．The Son Of The Sea |
Why did the man feel that he could be lucky this time?
| A．Because a small tuna took the hook on his line. |
| B．Because he dreamed about the American lions. |
| C．Because he saw many flying fish were chased by the dolphins. |
| D．Because a lot of sharks followed his boat. |
According to the text, which statement is NOT true about Manolin?
| A．The boy had mercy on Santiago. |
| B．The boy often shared his stories with Santiago. |
| C．The boy showed his great concerns to Santiago. |
| D．The boy was Santiago’s adopted son. |
Why does Santiago let the marlin lead his boat instead of pulling the big fish up?
| A．He wanted to kill the marlin first before he pulled it up to the boat. |
| B．He was too tired and hungry to pull the big fish up. |
| C．His experience told him not to do so before the fish was tired out. |
| D．He wanted to use the marlin as a bait to catch the sharks. |
Which sentence below can be used to best describe Santiago’s character?
| A．“He no longer dreamed of his dead wife.”(Para 1) |
| B．“Although he was alone and no longer strong, he had his skill and knew many tricks.”(Para4) |
| C．“Almost exhausted, he finally drew his big fish alongside and drove in the harpoon.”(Para7) |
| D．“Once he fell under their weight and lay patiently until he could gather his strength to go on .”(Para 9) |
According to the text, what will be talked about in the next paragraph?
| A．the man’s action to realize his dream about the lions. |
| B．people’s reflection when they saw the giant marlin outside. |
| C．people’s discussion about how they ate the giant marlin. |
| D．a funeral held by the boy and the local people after his death. |
A person named Bernard Jackson today is a free man, but he has many bitter memories. He spent five years in prison after a jury (陪审团)wrongly convicted (判处…有罪) him of raping two women. At Jackson’s trial, although two witnesses testified that Jackson was with them in another location at the time of the crime, he was convicted anyway. Why? The jury believed the testimony(证词)of the two victims, who positively identified Jackson as the man who had attacked them. The court eventually freed Jackson after the police found the real criminal.
Many factors influence the accuracy of eyewitness testimony. For instance, witnesses sometimes see photographs of several suspects before they try to identify the person they saw in a group of people. They can become confused by seeing many photographs of similar faces. The number of people in the group, and whether it is a person or a photograph, may also affect a witness’s decision. People sometimes have difficulty identifying people of other races. The questions the police ask witnesses also have an effect on them.
Many people believe that police officers are more reliable than ordinary people. Psychologists decided to test this idea, and they discovered that it is not true. Two psychologists showed a film of crimes to both police officers and civilians. The psychologists found no difference between the police and the civilians in correctly remembering the details of the crimes.
Despite all the possibilities for inaccuracy, courts cannot omit eyewitness testimony from a trial. American courts depend almost completely on eyewitness testimony to resolve(决定)court cases. Sometimes it is the only evidence to a crime, such as rape. Furthermore, eyewitness testimony is often correct. Although people do sometimes make mistakes, and convict innocent people, more importantly, eyewitness testimony has rightly convicted a larger number of guilty people.
American courts depend on the ability of the twelve jurors, and not the judges, to determine the accuracy of the witness’s testimony. It is their responsibility to decide if a certain witness could actually see, hear and remember what happened.Bernard Jackson was found guilty and sentenced 5 years’ prison because________.
| A．the victims insisted that he was the attacker |
| B．he admitted the crime of raping two women |
| C．the police discovered evidence leading to his guilt |
| D．the eyewitness proved the victims’ testimony |
The following statements may be the reasons for why sometimes the eyewitness’ testimony is not accurate EXCEPT ________.
| A．the eyewitness is confused by the police’s questions |
| B．the eyewitness is shown photos of many similar faces |
| C．the eyewitness lacks the professional help from police |
| D．the eyewitness can’t identify people of other races clearly. |
An inaccurate eyewitness testimony may lead to________.
| A．the misunderstanding of the case |
| B．the disbelief in the court |
| C．the disrespect for the eyewitness |
| D．the conviction of an innocent person |
Eyewitness testimony is important because ___________.
| A．it can be relied on to detect criminals in all cases. |
| B．it is sometimes the only way to resolve court cases. |
| C．it is sometimes the only clue for police investigation. |
| D．it is more reliable than physical evidences to a crime. |
According to the text, we can infer that ________.
| A．eyewitness testimony is valuable, though sometimes incorrect. |
| B．police identification is more reliable than that of the ordinary people |
| C．crime victims often fail to give positive identification of the suspects |
| D．the jury relies on the judge than the eyewitness for a decision |
Australia---The vote for euthanasia(安乐死)was finally taken at 3:45 this morning. After six months’ argument and final 16 hours’ hot debates, Australia’s Northern Territory became the first legal authority in the world to allow doctors to take the lives of incurably ill patients who wish to die. The bill was passed by the vote of 15 to 10. Almost immediately word flashed on the Internet and was picked up, half a world away, by John Hofsess, the director of the Right to Die Society of Canada. He sent it on through the group’s on-line service, Death NET. Hofsess says, “We posted it all day long, because this isn’t just something that happened in Australia. It’s world history.”
The full import may take a while to understand. The NT Rights of the Terminally III law has left physicians and citizens trying to deal with its moral and practical meaning. Some have breathed sighs of relief, but others, including churches, right to life groups and the Australian Medical Association, bitterly attacked the bill and the haste(匆忙,急忙) of its passage. But the tide is unlikely to turn back. In Australia — where an aging population, life extending technology and changing community attitudes have all played their part — other states are going to consider making a similar law to for euthanasia. In the US and Canada, where the right to die movement is gathering strength, observers are waiting for the dominoes(多米诺骨牌) to start falling.
Under the new Northern Territory law, an adult patient can request death — probably by a deadly injection or pill — to put an end to suffering. The patient must be diagnosed as incurably ill by two doctors. After a “cooling off” period of seven days, the patient can sign a certificate of request. After 48 hours the wish for death can be met. For Lloyd Nickson, a 54 year old Darwin man suffering from lung cancer, the law means he can get on with living without the fear of his suffering: a terrifying death from his breathing condition. “I’m not afraid of dying from a spiritual point of view, but what I was afraid of was how I’d go, because I’ve watched people die in the hospital fighting for oxygen and clawing at their masks,” he says. According to the text ,which of the following statements is TRUE?
| A．Australia now is the only country in the world to pass the law of euthanasia. |
| B．All people in Australia don’t have the same positive attitude to euthanasia. |
| C．Many patients will ask their doctors for euthanasia because they are afraid of death. |
| D．According to the law, if a patient requests death, his or her wish will be met after 48 hours. |
The underlined sentence in Para 2, “observers are waiting for the dominoes to start falling.” means that observers are waiting to see ___________.
| A．the result of the game of dominoes. |
| B．that people’s attitude to euthanasia will be changed. |
| C．that the bill about euthanasia in Australia will come to an end. |
| D．the similar bills will be passed in other countries. |
Australia was the first country to pass the bill of euthanasia, but not USA or Canada. Which one is NOT the reason ?
| A．In Australia, the technology of extending life is advanced. |
| B．In Australia, it is easy to deal with the moral and practical meaning. |
| C．In Australia, old people take up great part in the population of the whole country. |
| D．Australians gradually realize suffering from a terrible disease is worse than immediate death. |
It can be inferred from the text that _____________.
| A．when Lloyd Nickson dies, he will face his death with calm characteristic of euthanasia. |
| B．physicians and citizens in Australia share the same view on euthanasia. |
| C．other countries are going to consider making a similar law to deal with euthanasia. |
| D．under the bill, patients requesting death are sure to be injected by deadly medicine. |
What’s the author’s attitude to euthanasia?
| A．Negative | B．Critical | C．Positive | D．Doubtful |
Today, in many high schools, teaching is now a technical miracle of computer labs, digital cameras, DVD players and laptops. Teachers can e-mail parents, post messages for students on online bulletin(公告，告示) boards, and take attendance with a quick movement of a mouse.
Even though we are now living in the digital age, the basic and most important element of education has not changed. Most students still need that one-on-one, teacher-student relationship to learn and to succeed. Teenagers need instruction in English, math or history, but they also want personal advice and encouragement. Kids talk with me about their families, their weekend plans, their favorite TV shows and their relationship problems. In my English and journalism classes, we talk about Shakespeare and persuasive(富有哲理的) essays, but we also discuss college basketball, the war in Iraq and career choices. Students show me pictures of their rebuilt cars, their family vacations, and their newborn baby brothers. This personal connection is the necessary link between teachers and students that no amount of technology can improve upon or replace.
A few years ago I had a student in sophomore English who was struggling with my class and with school in general. Although he was a humorous young man who liked to joke around, I knew his family life was far from ideal. Whenever I approached him about missing homework or low test grades, he always had the same reply, “It doesn’t matter because I’m quitting school anyway.” Even though he always said this in a half-teasing way, I knew he needed to hear my different opinion and my “value of a high school education” lecture. He needed to hear this speech from me. After he left my class, he struggled through the next two years of school. But, he did finally graduate because we kept telling him to hang in there. We’d cared about him finishing school.
Recently, I saw this former student working at a local Italian restaurant. I told him again how proud I was of him. He said that he was hoping to go back to school to become a certified electrician. I encouraged him to get that training.
Students rely on compassionate teachers to guide, to tutor, to listen, to laugh and to cry with them. Teachers provide the most important link in the educational process—the human one. The first paragraph mainly talks about _____________.
| A．the variety of modern teaching methods. |
| B．the wide use of modern technology in education |
| C．the importance of teacher-parent relationship. |
| D．the importance of using modern technology. |
The underlined word “ compassionate” in Para 5 means ____________.
| A．ambitious | B．knowledgeable | C．sympathetic | D．generous |
According to the text, the most important element in education is _________.
| A．teachers’ good instruction | B．advanced technology |
| C．teachers’ encouragement | D．personal connection |
The author states his view of education by __________.
| A．example | B．description | C．figure | D．comparison |