Has this happened to you? You’re about to drift off to sleep when suddenly you feel like you’re falling or coming down on a roller coaster.
You then wake up to realize that you’re safe in your bed. You may have been confused or frightened for a second or two and your heart may be beating faster. You may have also felt the muscles in your body jerk(抽搐) when this all happened. Did you ever wonder why?
This falling sensation, together with a body movement known as a “sleep start”, is what doctors and scientists call a myoclonic(肌阵挛的)jerk, and it usually happens right before going into deeper stages of sleep. Here’s why doctors think the falling feeling and myoclonic jerks happen. When you fall asleep, normally your body temperature goes down and your heart start to beat just a little slower. This is because your brain signals your body to relax to prepare for sleep. When your muscles are relaxed, you go into the very first stages of sleep, but you’re not sleeping too deeply yet.
This brain activity may cause your larger muscles to contract(收缩) a little bit. In response, another part of your brain will make up a very quick mini-dream to go along with what is happening. You might think this would take a while, but your brain works so fast that it makes up the story almost at the same instant that your muscles jerk.
During this light sleep, you can be awakened easily. People who wake up during this light sleep believe they haven’t fallen asleep yet. That’s why you may think that your body jerked right before you were about to fall asleep.
Myoclonic jerk are a normal part of sleep. Most people have them at one time or another. But many people don’t realize their muscles are jerking during night sleep if it doesn’t wake them up.
So the next time you dream about falling and wake up in a sweat, don’t worry! Your body is just telling your muscles to relax and get some rest!People sometimes wake up during a light sleep because______.
| A．they are disturbed by others. |
| B．they are too tired to fall asleep. |
| C．their bodies are preparing for sleep. |
| D．they believe their lives are in danger. |
What does the underlined part “ what is happening” in Paragraph 4 refer to?
| A．The body jerk | B．The mini- dream |
| C．The slow heartbeat | D．The falling body temperature |
The author thinks myoclonic jerks during sleep are _____.
| A．worrying | B．usual | C．abnormal | D．useful |
It can be inferred that myoclonic jerks ________.
A. lead to muscle disease
B. happen in a deep sleep
B. are related to brain disease
D. don’t always wake people up
Is there anything more important than health? I don’t think so. “Health is the greatest wealth.” wise people say. You can’t be good at your studies or work well when you are ill. If you have a headache, toothache, backache, earache or bad pain in the stomach, if you complain of a bad cough, if you run a high temperature and have a bad cold, or if you suffer from high or low blood pressure, I think you should go to the doctor.
The doctor will examine your throat, feel your pulse, test your blood pressure, take your temperature, sound your heart and lungs, test your eyes, check your teeth or have your chest X-rayed. After that he will advise some treatment, or some medicine. The only thing you have to do is to follow his advice. Speaking about doctor’s advice, I can’t help telling you a funny story.
An old gentleman came to see the doctor. The man was very ill. He told the doctor about his weakness, memory loss and serious problems with his heart and lungs. The doctor examined him and said there was no medicine for his disease. He told his patient to go to a quiet place for a month and have a good rest. He also advised him to eat a lot of meat, drink two glasses of red wine every day and take long walks. In other words, the doctor advised him to follow the rule: “Eat at pleasure, drink with measure and enjoy life as it is.” The doctor also said that if the man wanted to be well again, he shouldn’t smoke more than one cigarette a day. A month later the gentleman came into the doctor’s office. He looked cheerful and happy. He thanked the doctor and said that he had never felt a healthier man. “But you know, doctor,” he said, “it’s not easy to begin smoking at my age.”The writer thinks that_____.
| A．health is more important than wealth |
| B．work is as important as studies |
| C．medicine is more important than pleasure |
| D．nothing is more important than money |
The doctor usually tells his patient what to do______.
| A．without examining the patient |
| B．after he has examined the patient |
| C．if the patient doesn’t take medicine |
| D．unless the patient feels pain |
The underlined part in paragraph 3 means “________”.
| A．he was feeling better than ever |
| B．he wasn’t a healthy man |
| C．he was feeling worse than before |
| D．he will be well again |
From the last sentence of the passage, we learn the man_______ before the doctor told him not to smoke more than one cigarette a day.
| A．was a heavy smoker | B．didn’t smoke so much |
| C．didn’t smoke | D．began to learn to smoke |
Which of the following is NOT true?
| A．The doctor usually tests his/her blood pressure when a person is ill. |
| B．The man told the doctor he couldn’t remember things. |
| C．The man thanked the doctor. |
| D．The man didn’t follow the doctor’s advice. |
There are many famous museums throughout the world where people can enjoy art, Washington, D.C. has the National Gallery of Art(美术馆); Paris has the Louvre; London, the British Museum. Florida International University(FIU) in Miami also shows art for people to see. And it does so without a building, or even a wall for its drawings and paintings.
FIU has opened what it says is the first computer art museum in the United States. You don't have to visit the University to see the art. You just need a computer linked to a telephone.
You can call the telephone number of a University computer and connect your own computer to it. All of the art is stored in the school computer. It is computer art, produced electronically (采用电子手段) by artists on their own computers. In only a few minutes, your computer can receive and copy all the pictures and drawings.、
Robert Shostak is director of the new computer museum. He says he started the museum because computer artists had no place to show their works.
A computer artist could only record his pictures electronically and send the records, or floppy discs(软盘), to others to see on their computers. He could also put his pictures on paper. But to print good pictures on paper, the computer artist needed an expensive laser(激光) printer.
Robert Shostak says the electronic museum is mostly for art or computer students at schools and universities. Many of the pictures in the museum are made by students. Mr Shostak said the FIU museum will make computer art more fun for computer artists because more people can see it. He says artists enjoy their work much more if they have an audience. And the great number of home computers in America could mean a huge audience for the electronic museum.The main purpose of this text is to give information about ______.
A. famous museums throughout the world.
B. a computer art museum in Miami, U.S.A.
C. art exhibitions in Florida Intentional University
D. latest development in computer artTo see the art in FIU museum, your special needs include ______.
| A．floppy discs |
| B．a computer and a printer |
| C．pictures and drawings on paper |
| D．a computer connected to the museum by telephone line |
What are stored in this museum?
| A．Paintings drawn by means of computer. |
| B．Different styles of paintings. |
| C．Drawings done by art students of FIU. |
| D．Old paintings. |
The museum was started when ______.
| A．Robert Shostak wanted to do something for computer scientists |
| B．Robert Shostak wanted to help computer artists |
| C．art students needed a place to show their works |
| D．computer scientists wanted to do something about art |
The words "an audience" in the last paragraph here refer to ______.
| A．art students |
| B．owners of computers |
| C．exhibits in the museum |
| D．those who can enjoy art |
King Midas used to love gold. One day he met a fairy who allowed him to make a wish for something. The king replied at once , ‘‘I love gold . I want everything I touch to change into gold”. ‘‘Very well , tomorrow morning, everything you touch will turn into gold .”Saying this, the fairy disappeared.
The king waited excitedly till the next morning. To his joy ,everything he touched changed immediately into gold. ‘‘I’m the richest man in the world now.” He shouted.
Soon Midas became hungry. He sat down at his table. All the foods and drinks turned into gold in his hand . ‘‘I’m dying of hunger.” He cried.
Just then his daughter came running in . ‘‘Why are you so sad , dad ?” she asked, putting her arms around him. There and then she became a golden statue. The king loved his daughter very much .Seeing this ,he began to cry. He looked up and suddenly saw the fairy before him. ‘‘Don’t you like the golden touch?” asked the fairy. ‘‘ Please take it away,” begged the king, ‘‘ give me back my daughter.” ‘‘Well, you have learned your lesson. Go and wash in the river. Then the golden touch will be gone.” The king ran quickly to the nearby river.The fairy allowed the king to make a wish because_____
| A．she hoped to make the king the richest in the world. |
| B．She loved gold too. |
| C．She wanted to teach the king a lesson. |
| D．She wanted to turn the king’s daughter into gold. |
When the foods and drinks turned into gold the king was _____
A. excited B. hungry C. worried D happyThe king’s daughter became a golden statue when _____
| A．she saw her father |
| B．the king went to meet her |
| C．she put her arms around her father |
| D．the king loved her very much |
Which of the following might have happened afterwards?
| A．The king died in the river. |
| B．The king’s daughter changed back from gold to a lovely girl. |
| C．All the things the king had touched changed back into real ones. |
| D．Both B and C |
What do you think the story tries to tell us?
| A．Gold makes people unhappy. |
| B．More gold , more happiness. |
| C．Gold is not the thing that makes life happy. |
| D．People feel happy if they have not gold. |
While she may be best known for her role as Hermione Granger in the Harry Potter films，Emma Watson would rather be known for something else—her mind.
The 18yearold British actress intends to put her acting career on hold to pursue higher studies at a university after she finished filming the final installment，Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.
Watson，whose parents are both Oxford graduates，recently scored straight A's in her Alevels. She is now on a gap year before starting university.
Earlier this month，Watson applied to two of the top universities in the United States—Harvard and Yale. She admitted that Harry Potter series has brought her fame and financial security(经济保障)．She has made more than ￡ 10 million so far，but now she “has a need to study”．
“I think the entertainment business is such a temperamental one. One minute you're up there and the next—nothing，”she said.
Watson is growing up in front of millions of viewers(观众)．She was only nine years old when she started playing the role of Hermione. And the way she figured out how to deal with media attention is “try not to read too much of what is said and try to distance myself a bit from it”．
Watson has other interests. These include，interestingly，fishing and she has helped raise money for the Wild Trout(鳟鱼)Trust.Which of the following topics is not mentioned in the passage?
| A．Watson's interests. | B．Watson's intention. |
| C．Watson's success. | D．Watson's worries. |
The underlined word “temperamental” in the fifth paragraph means ________.
| A．difficult | B．different | C．changeable | D．practical |
The underlined word “it” in the sixth paragraph refers to ________.
| A．reading | B．media attention | C．playing the role of Hermione | D．the viewer |
From the passage we may infer that ________.
| A．Watson doesn't want to continue her acting |
| B．Watson felt very proud of being known as Hermione Granger |
| C．Watson hasn't read too much so far |
| D．Watson was born in a welleducated family |
CONGRATULATIONS
We’ve organized the following information to help you prepare for your arrival at Boston College．Please feel free to contact our Admissions Office at any time over the coming months with any questions．
Your First Steps…
Please return the Acknowledgment Form sent with your acceptance letter to Dean Robert Howe, Graduate School of Arts & Sciences, McGuinn Hall 221,140 Commonwealth Avenue, Chestnut Hill, MA 02467．
■For Ph．D．Acceptances and Master’s Acceptances with funding, we ask you to reply by April 25, 2008．
■For Master’s Acceptances without funding and Non-degree Acceptances, we ask you to reply by May 31, 2008．
■You should also contact your department to receive any department information．
Over the Coming Months…
Get informed about services around campus．We have provided links for you to the following offices．
■Student Services
After you return your Acknowledgment Form, you should receive a letter containing your BC Username and Eagle ID number．With this information you can reach email and Agora．In Agora, BC’s online community, you can update your student information, check your student account, and register （登记） for classes．
The Office of Student Services issues （发行） your BC Eagle One Card．This ID card acts as your campus library card and meal card．
Student Services’ website offers a complete listing of courses for the school year, as well as student forms and other important student information．The Office of Student Services also handles billing．
■Housing …
CLICK HERE for more information．
If we can be of any more help to you, just contact us．Congratulations again! We look forward to you joining our University!The above page can most probably be read _________．
| A．on the Boston College website | B．in the Boston College newspaper |
| C．on BC Eagle One Card | D．at Student Services |
The information above is particularly useful for those ________．
| A．who want to apply for Boston College |
| B．who want to know about Boston College |
| C．who’ve been admitted to Boston College |
| D．who’ve decided to pay a visit to Boston College |
If you want to study for your master’s degree with funding, you will have to _______．
| A．return your Acknowledgment Form by May 31, 2008 |
| B．send back your Acknowledgment Form by April 25, 2008 |
| C．email your Acknowledgment Form to Admissions Office by May 31, 2008 |
| D．return your Acknowledgment Form to Student Services by April 25, 2008 |
If you want to decide what courses for the school year you’d better _________．
| A．call up the Office of Student Services |
| B．get in touch with the Admissions Office |
| C．read your acceptance letter |
| D．visit Student Services’ website |