We know that hugs make us feel easy inside. And this feeling, it turns out, could actually ward off stress and protect r the immune (免疫) system, according to a new research from Carnegie Mellon University.
It’s a well-known fact that stress can weaken the immune system. In this study, the researchers sought to determine whether hugs----like social support more broadly ----could protect individuals from the increased sensitivity to illness brought on by the particular stress that come with interpersonal conflict.
“We know that people experiencing ongoing conflicts with others are less able to fight off cold viruses. We also know that people who report having social support are partly protected from the effects of stress on psychological states, such as depression and anxiety, “the study’s lead author, psychologist Dr. Sheldon Cohen , said in a statement. “We tested whether awareness of social support is equally effective in protecting us from sensitivity to infection caused by stress and also whether receiving hugs might partially account for those feeling of support and thus protect a person against infection.”
In the experiment , over 400 healthy adults filled out a questionnaire about their perceived (感知) social support and also participated in a nightly phone interview for two weeks . They were asked the frequency they engaged in interpersonal conflicts and received bugs that day.
Then, the researchers exposed the participants to a common cold virus, and monitored them to assess signs of infection. They found that both perceived social support and more frequent hugs reduced the risk of infection associated with experiencing interpersonal conflict. Regardless of whether or not they experienced social conflicts, infected participants with greater perceived social support and more frequent hugs had less severe illness symptoms.
“This suggests that being hugged by a trusted person may act as an effective means of conveying support and that increasing the frequency of hugs might be an effective means of reducing the effects of stress,” Cohen said. “The apparent protective effect of hugs may result from the physical contact itself or hugging being a behavioral indicator of support and closeness. Either way, those who receive more hugs are somewhat more protected from infection.”
If you need any more reason to go wrap your arms around someone special, consider this: hugs also lower blood pressure, reduce fearsome around death and dying, improve heart health and decrease feeling of loneliness.In Paragraph 1, the underlined words “ward off “can be replaced by ____.
| A．produce | B．increase | C．prevent | D．support |
Dr. Sheldon Cohen’s experiment shows that ____.
| A．hugs can hide serious illness symptoms |
| B．social conflicts can monitor signs of infection |
| C．social support can reduce the risk of having a cold |
| D．depression and anxiety result from less social support |
The passage aims to convey that ____.
| A．hugs can have protective effects |
| B．social support can sure diseases |
| C．interpersonal conflicts cause infections |
| D．stress can weaken our immune system |
The passage is most likely to be found in ____.
| A．a social science magazine |
| B．a commercial brochure |
| C．a medical report |
| D．an academic essay |
Stay-at home careers are the preferred way to earn a living for those who like to set their own hours and be their own boss, mothers of young children, and those who like to avoid office politics．There are plenty of opportunities to earn from home．Even if you earn little first, the quality of life should make up for the loss of income．Take a look at the following choices for home-birds:
Online tutoring—You can earn anything from Rs 8,000 to 30,000 a month if you are a qualified teacher with computer and communication skills．The subjects in demand these days are math, English, physics, chemistry and biology．You can either teach part-time （4 hours） or full-time （9 hours）．
Freelance writers—You have a good writing skills but don’t have time to work a nine-to-five job? You can still use your skills and earn a good amount of money．Many companies these days require good writers．One can earn up to Rs 8,000 to 50,000．
Online-traders—Earn a lot of money by share trading．Just clear the NCFM （Capital Market） exam and you 
can start trading．You can bring in Rs 10,000 to 1000,000 per month．
Designers—If you have the creative skills and a creative gift, try becoming a designer．Designers are required in different fields．One can earn nearly Rs 8,000 to 20,000 per month．According to the passage, those who likes stay-at-home careers ________．
| A．perhaps can’t earn as much as those working in an office |
| B．needn’t do anything at home and earns a lot |
| C．can’t be mothers who have children to look after |
| D．are often worried about office politics |
If you want to be an online-trader, you will have to ________．
| A．be more than 18 years old |
| B．pass a kind of exam |
| C．have good writing skills |
| D．have creative skills and a creative gift |
The passage is written mainly to ________．
| A．sell products to readers |
| B．join the author’s company |
| C．give some advice to readers |
| D．get help from readers |
Science Daily—Kids may roll their eyes when their mothers asks them about their school day, but answering her may actually help them learn．New research from Vanderbilt University reveals that children learn the solution to a problem best when they explain it to their mom．
“We knew that children learn well with their moms or with a peer, but we did not know if that was because they were getting feedback and help,” Bethany Rittle-Johnson, the study’s lead author and assistant professor of psychology at Vanderbilt’s Peabody College of education and human development, said．
“In this study, we just had the children’s mothers listen, without providing any assistance．We’ve found that by simply listening, a mother helps her child learn．”
Rittle-Johnson believes the new finding can help parents better assist their children with their schoolwork, even when they are not sure of the answer themselves．Although the researchers used children and their mothers in the study, they believe the same results will hold true whether the person is the child’s father, grandparent, or other familiar persons．
“The basic idea is that it is really effective to try to get kids to explain things themselves instead of just telling them the answer,” she said．“Explaining their reasoning, to a parent or perhaps to other people they know, will help them understand the problem and apply what they have learned to other situations．We saw that this simple act of listening by mom made a difference in the quality of the child’s explanations and how well they could solve more difficult problems later on．According to the passage, a mom had better ________．
| A．give a kid some help when he is explaining his problem |
| B．just listen while a kid is explaining his problem |
| C．work together with a kid toward the solution to a problem |
D．leave a kid alone when he meets a problem a t school |
If she wants to help a child with his schoolwork, a mom ________．
| A．should know the answer to a problem first |
| B．should pay attention to the child’s feedback． |
| C．may not know the answer herself |
| D．should not interrupt the child |
Who will be the least help to a kid when he is explaining, according to Rittle-Johnson?
| A．The kid’s mom． | B．The kid’s grandmother． |
| C．A peer． | D．A relative the kid doesn’t know． |
Which of the following best gives the main idea of the passage?
| A．Children learn better when their mom is hearing their explaining． |
| B．Children learn better if they find the solution to a problem themselves． |
| C．Parents should not provide any assistance to their children’s schoolwork． |
| D．A mom should listen more to their children when they have problems at school． |
The Wife-carrying World Championship has been celebrated in a small town in central Finland since 1992．In 1992, the people of the town decided to restart some long-forgotten traditions．Back in the late 1800s, there was a robber called Rosvo-Ronkainen in that area．He was said to only accept men as members of his gang who proved their worth in challenges．At that time, it was also a common practice to steal women from neighboring villages．
This event is becoming increasingly popular．A large number of competitors, people, and journalists from Finland to Canada attend the Wife-carrying World Championship every year．
The event is famous for its warm and humorous atmosphere．The Wife-carrying World Championship is held on a 253．3 meters long official track．The track has two dry obstacles （障碍物）and a water obstacle, about a meter deep．
There are a few basic rules and the winner is the couple who complete the course in the shortest time．The wife to be carried may be your own, or your neighbor’s．The minimum weight of the wife to be carried is 49 kg．If she is less than 49kg, the wife will be given a heavy bag to carry．Each time a competitor drops his wife, that couple will be fined 15 seconds．
Alongside with the Wife-carrying World Championship, there is also a team competition．The distance is the same but three men in the team carry the wife in turns．At the exchange point the carrier has to drink official “wife-carrying drink”．Then he may continue the race．A special prize is awarded to the team with the best costumes．
While the Wife-carrying World Championship is being held, there are bands playing music, a wife-carrying dance and other forms of entertainment．The Wife-carrying World Championship is famous because ________．
| A．it is held on a 253．3 meters long official track |
| B．many competitors take part in it |
| C．it has a pleasant atmosphere |
| D．the winner will be awarded a lot of money |
If a husband drops his wife 3 times in the competition, he will be fined ________．
| A．15 seconds | B．30 seconds |
| C．45 seconds | D．60 seconds |
Compared with the Wife-carrying World Championship, the team competition ________．
| A．is more exciting | B．has a special prize |
| C．has a different track | D．has three teams altogether |
The passage is written mainly to ________．
| A．warn people that the competition is dangerous． |
| B．attract more visitors to the Wife-carrying World Championship． |
| C．introduce how the Wife-carrying World Championship has become popular． |
| D．tell us something about the Wife-carrying World Championship． |
Yesterday was my stepmother’s birthday．I haven’t been home for a long time, so I wanted to stop by the house to see her on this special day．
I have been struggling on a low inc
ome so I was afraid that I couldn’t afford the long trip．Gas is so expensive nowadays! Anyway, I filled my tank with gas and set off．
I stopped at a shopping mall and found a present．It was the perfect gift and I knew she would love it．But when I got to the cashier, my card wasdeclined! I didn’t have enough money in my account to pay for the gift!
So I pondered the issue for a few minutes．I could put it back and get something cheaper, but I knew there was nothing else in the store she would have liked as much．So, I got to my smart-phone and transferred some money from my saving account and was able to buy the gift．It took a big part of my savings but I wanted her to have something special．
It turned out that she loved the gift and I felt that even though I had spent almost all my money, my stepmother deserved the best．I was glad I gave her the best I could．
Before I left my parents’ house, my dad took me to one side and, with our secret handshake, he gave me some money．I hadn’t said anything to him about my financial condition, but I guessed my dad just knew it．When I got to the car, I saw the amount he gave me was three times what I had spent on the gas and the gift!
It goes to show that doing the right thing always comes with great rewards．Why was the writer unwilling to have a long trip?
| A．Because gas was hardly available． |
| B．Because the writer didn’t like driving． |
| C．Because the writer was short of money． |
| D．Because the road was difficult to drive on． |
The underlined word “pondered” in Paragraph 4 probably means ________．
| A．thought about | B．tried on |
| C．depended on | D．got through |
From the passage, we can infer that ________．
| A．the writer loves his stepmother very much |
| B．the gift the writer bought was loved by his father very much |
| C．the writer spend all his savings buying the gift for his stepmother |
| D．the gift the writer bought was the most expensive one in the shop |
Why did the writer’s father shake hands with the writer in secret?
| A．Because he wanted to ask the writer for something special． |
| B．Because he wanted to give the writer some money． |
| C．Because he knew the writer had been struggling financially． |
| D．Because he didn’t want others to copy their handshake． |
A recent study, published in last week’s Journal of the American Medical Association, offers a picture of how risky(冒险的) it is to get a lift from a teenage driver. Indeed, a 16-year-old driver with three or more passengers is three times as likely to have a deadly accident as a teenager driving alone, while the risk of death for drivers between 30 and 59 decreases with each additional passenger.
The authors also found that the death rates for teenage drivers increased sharply after 10 p.m., and especially after midnight. With passengers in the car, the driver was even more likely to die in a late-night accident.
Robert Foss, a scientist at the University of North Carolina Highway Safety Research Center, says the higher death rates for teenage drivers have less to do with “really stupid behavior” than with just a lack of driving experience. “The basic issue,” he says, “is that adults who are responsible for issuing licenses fail to recognize how complex and skilled a task driving is.”
Both he and the author of the study believe that the way to mitigate (使……缓解)the problem is to have states set up so-called graduated licensing systems, in which getting a license is a multistage process. A graduated license requires that a teenager first prove himself capable of driving in the presence of an adult, followed by a period of driving with night or passenger limits, before graduating to full driving licenses.
Graduated licensing systems have reduced teenage driver crashes, according to recent studies. About half of the states now have some sort of graduated licensing system in place, but only 10 of those states have limits on passengers. California is the strictest, with a new driver under 20 forbidden to carry any passenger (without the presence of an adult over 25) for the first six months.Which of the following situations can we infer is most dangerous according to the passage?
| A．A teenager driving after midnight with passengers in the car. |
| B．Adults giving a lift to teenagers on the highway after 10 p.m. |
| C．Adults driving with three or more teenage passengers late at night. |
| D．A teenager getting a lift from a stranger on the highway at midnight. |
According to Robert Foss, the high death rate of teenage drivers is mainly because of _______.
| A．their frequent driving at night |
| B．their improper ways of driving |
| C．their driving with passengers |
| D．their lack of driving experience |
According to Paragraph 3, which of the following statements is TRUE?
| A．The licensing departments are partly responsible for teenagers' driving accidents. |
| B．Driving is too complex a skill for teenagers to learn. |
| C．Teenagers should be forbidden to apply to take driving lessons. |
| D．Teenagers should spend more time learning to drive. |
A suggested measure to be taken to reduce teenagers' driving accidents is that_______.
| A．driving in the presence of an adult should be made a rule |
| B．the licensing system should be improved |
| C．they should not be allowed to drive after 10 p.m. |
| D．they should be forbidden to take on passengers |