Anyone who has worn a cast (石膏) knows that rebuilding muscle strength once the cast is removed can be difficult. Now researchers at the Ohio Musculoskeletal and Neurological Institute (OMNI) at Ohio University have found that the mind is critical in maintaining muscle strength following a long period of not moving and that mental imagination may be key in reducing the associated muscle loss.
Strength is controlled by a number of factors----the most studied by far is skeletal muscle. However, the nervous system is also an important, though not fully understood, determining factor of strength and weakness.
Brian C. Clark and colleagues set out to test how the system functions in strength development. They designed an experiment to measure changes in wrist (腕) muscle strength in three groups of healthy adults. Twenty-nine subjects wore a hard cast that extended from just below the elbow (肘) past the fingers, effectively preventing the hand and wrist from moving, for four weeks. Fifteen subjects who did not wear casts served as the control group.
Of the 29 people wearing a hard cast, half were asked to regularly perform an exercise, imagining they were strongly contracting their wrist for five seconds and then resting for five seconds. This was repeated four times in a row followed by a one-minute break for a total of 13 rounds per session and five sessions per week. The other half performed no imagination exercises.
At the end of the four-week experiment, both groups who wore casts had lost strength in their unmoving limbs (肢体) when compared to the control group. But the group that performed imagination exercises lost 50% less strength than the non-imagination group. The nervous system’s ability to fully make the muscle recover also returned more quickly in the imagination group compared to the non-imagination group.What does the underlined word “critical” mean in the first paragraph?
| A．Serious. | B．Disapproving. |
| C．Significant. | D．Criticizing. |
Which of the following statements is NOT true according to the passage?
| A．Scientists have partly understood the nervous system. |
| B．Whoever has worn a cast for long may have difficulty in muscle recovery. |
| C．Scientists have already spent a lot of time in studying skeletal muscle. |
| D．The number of the subjects in the experiment was 29 in all. |
What can we learn from the experiment?
| A．The control group lost 50% less strength than the non-imagination group. |
| B．The imagination group lost more strength than the non-imagination group. |
| C．The control group wore casts but didn’t perform the imagination exercise. |
| D．The speed of non-imagination group’s muscle recovery was slower. |
Where can you most probably find the passage?
| A．In a science magazine. | B．In a storybook. |
| C．In a textbook . | D．In a book review. |
City buses are white and blue. Please board at the front door and pay the fare as you get on. The fare per ride is $1.50 for adults and $1.00 for senior citizens. The fare may be paid by cash, bus pass or multiple passes. Please pay the exact amount directly into the slot at the top of the fare box. Remember that bills are not accepted and drivers cannot make change for riders.
When you wish to get off the bus, please notify the driver in advance by pressing one of the buttons provided throughout the bus for this purpose. The bus may pass bus stops without stopping if no one is getting off or waiting to get on.
There are five subway lines in the city. The fare is set at five rates from $2.00 to $3.50 according to the number of predetermined “price zones” traveled. To purchase the appropriate ticket, please check the fare on the boards installed above the ticket-selling machines in each subway station.
Pass through the automated ticket gates by inserting the ticket into the slot. When getting off the subway at a station beyond the validity of the ticket, pay the additional fare at a fare-adjustment machine. What is the lowest cost of a subway ride for an adult?
| A．$1.00. | B．$1.50 . | C．$2.00. | D．$3.50. |
How can a rider determine the fare of a subway ride?
| A．It is automatically determined. |
| B．It is always $2.00 |
| C．Fare-adjustment machines determine the fare. |
| D．All fares are posted. |
Bus riders can NOT use _________.
| A．change | B．bills | C．a bus pass | D．a multiple pass |
According to the information, all bus riders should _________.
| A．exit from the back door |
| B．let the driver know in advance if they want to get off |
| C．ask the driver for chang. |
| D．pay according to a “price zone” |
This text mainly tells us _________.
| A．how to use city buses and subways |
| B．how convenient city buses and subways are |
| C．how to pay the fare for city buses and subways |
| D．how well city buses and subways are equipped |
The first newspapers were written by hand and put up on walls in public place. The earliest daily newspaper was started in Rome in 59 BC. In the 700’s the world’s first printed newspaper was published. Europe didn’t have a regularly published newspaper until 1609, when one was started in Germany.
The first regularly published newspaper in the English language was printed in Amsterdam in 1620. In 1621, an English newspaper was started in London and was published once a week. The first daily English newspaper was the Daily Courant (每日新闻). It came out in March 1702.
In 1690, Benjamin Harris printed the first American newspaper in Boston. But not long after it was first published, the government stopped the paper. In 1704, John Campbell started The Boston Newsletter (波士顿新闻通讯), the first newspaper published in the American colonies. By 1760, the colonies had more than thirty daily newspapers. There are now about 1,800 daily papers in the United States.
Today, as a group, English language newspapers have the largest circulation (发行量) in the world. But the largest circulation for a newspaper is that of the Japanese newspaper Asahi Dhimbun (朝日新闻).It sells more than 11 million copies every day.The first daily newspaper came out in _____.
| A．59 BC | B．700’s | C．1609 | D．1620 |
The first regular published newspaper in Europe was printed in _____.
| A．England | B．Germany | C．France | D．Sweden |
The first printed newspaper in America came out in _____.
| A．Washington | B．New York | C．Boston | D．New Orleans |
Today there are about _____ daily newspaper printed in the United States.
| A．1621 | B．1704 | C．1760 | D．1800 |
Which is NOT true according to the passage?
| A．The first regularly published newspaper in the English language was printed in Amsterdam. |
| B．English language newspaper sells more than 11 million copies every day. |
| C．Europe didn’t have a regularly published newspaper in 1608. |
| D．The first daily English newspaper came out in March 1702. |
Have you wondered why different animals or pests have their particular colors? Colors in them seem to be used mainly to protect themselves.
Birds, especially seagulls are very fond of locusts, but birds can’t easily catch locusts because locusts change their colors together with the change of the color of crops. When crops are green, locusts look green. But when crops are ripe, locusts take on exactly the same brown color as crops have. Some other pests with different colors from plants are usually easily found and eaten by their enemies. So they have to hide themselves in terror for lives and appear only at night.
If you study the animal life in any part of the world, you will find the main use of coloring is to protect themselves, bears, wolves and other beasts move quietly through forests. They are usually invisible to the eyes of hunters, because they have the color much like the barks(树皮) of trees.
An even more strange act remains to be noticed. A kind of fish living in seas can send out a kind of very black liquid when it faces danger. While the liquid is over, its enemies cannot find it, and it quickly swims away. Thus, it has existed up to now though it is not powerful at all.This passage mainly talks about ______.
| A．the change of color in locusts |
| B．the protective coloration of animals and pests |
| C．how a certain sea fish protects itself |
| D．animals or pests can dye themselves different colors |
Locusts are ______ but they aren’t easily wiped out(消灭)by their enemies because _______.
| A．animals; they are powerful enough |
| B．beasts; they are dangerous to their enemies |
| C．pests; they take on the same colors as crops |
| D．birds; they fly very fast |
What does the underlined word “invisible” in Paragraph 3 mean?
| A．can’t be seen | B．can be seen | C．can’t move | D．can’t change |
The laptop is a machine which can be a mobile office；it can be used to entertain us and people can play computer games on them. One machine can perform many tasks at the same time. As technology grows，the size of the new laptop machines is decreasing. Now laptops are lighter，have smaller screen sizes，and perform better. Smaller screen laptops，which are more convenient to take along with，have been specially designed for professionals. Huge display screen laptops are still used by graphic(绘画的)designers and those who like playing computer games.
Laptops are advanced machines，and they can be very expensive. When we spend much money on something，we should take good care of it. I know some people who buy a new laptop every year. The reason they do this is that the old one either is broken or has some problems which cannot be fixed. Common problems are the breaking of the screen，the breaking of joints of the laptop，display problems，and keyboard problems.
Different problems will always come up with machines，and they cannot be avoided(避免)．Old machines will always have to be replaced by new ones. However，if we are more careful and handle our laptops with care，they will last for a longer period of time，and they will perform better. This is not a hard thing to do，but it will greatly increase the life and performance of laptops.According to the first paragraph，the laptop is a machine which________.
| A．is being used by more and more people in the office |
| B．will take the place of desktops sooner or later |
| C．is specially designed for people who like playing computer games |
| D．can be used for both work and entertainment purposes |
The underlined word in the first paragraph means “________”．
| A．becoming smaller |
| B．becoming more important |
| C．becoming more popular |
| D．becoming better |
We infer that graphic designers still use huge display screen laptops most probably because________.
| A．huge display screen laptops are very cheap |
| B．small display screen laptops are not on sale yet |
| C．they can see their drawings more clearly |
| D．they also want to play computer games |
What can we learn from the second paragraph?
| A．That laptops can only be used for one year. |
| B．That laptops are not as good as desktops. |
| C．That the prices for laptops are too high. |
| D．That laptops may have problems which cannot be fixed. |
Welcome to our school. You can do a lot of things here. Come and join us.
| Timetable | |
| Sunday8:30---11:30 Personal Inventions You can see many inventions by the students; you may also bring your own inventions. |
Monday19:00---21:00 Space and Man Dr. Thomas West If you want to know more about the universe. |
| Wednesday 19:30---21:00 Modern Medicine Mrs. Lucy Green Would you like to know medical science? |
Friday18:30---21:00 Computer Science Mr. Harry Morison from Harvard University Learn to use Windows XP. |
You may have a chance to introduce your inventions on _________.
| A．Sunday | B．Monday | C．Wednesday | D．Friday |
The person who teaches Computer Science is from___________.
| A．Canada | B．Australia | C．New Zealand | D．America |
You may learn something about a disease called TB from __________.
| A．Dr. West | B．Mr. Morison | C．Mrs. Green | D．Mr. Thomas |
If you want to learn something about satellites, you can go to the class from______.
| A．8:30 to 11:30 on Sunday |
| B．19:00 to 21:00 on Monday |
| C．19:30 to 21:00 on Wednesday |
| D．18:30 to 21:00 on Friday |