Eating too much fatty food, exercising too little and smoking can raise your future risk of heart disease. But there is another factor that can cause your heart problems more immediately: the air you breathe.
Previous studies have linked high exposure (暴露)to environmental pollution to an increased risk of heart problem, but two analyses now show that poor air quality can lead to heart attack or stroke (中风)within as little as a few hours after exposure. In one review of the research, scientists found that people exposed to high levels of pollutants (污染物)were up to 5% more likely to suffer a heart attack within days of exposure than those with lower exposure. A separate study of stroke patients showed that even air that the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) considers to be of “moderate” (良好)quality and relatively safe for our health can raise the risk of stroke as much as 34% within 12 to 14 hours of exposure.
The authors of both studies stress that these risks are relatively small for healthy people and certainly modest compared with other risk factors such as smoking and high blood pressure. However, it is important to be aware of these dangers because everyone is exposed to air pollution regardless of lifestyle choices. So stricter regulation by the EPA of pollutants may not only improve environmental air quality but could also become necessary to protect public health.The text mainly discusses the relationship between ______ .
A.heart problems and air quality |
B.heart problems and exercising |
C.heart problems and smoking |
D.heart problems and fatty food |
The underlined word “modest” in Paragraph 3 most probably means ______ .
A.relatively high | B.extremely low |
C.relatively low | D.extremely high |
The author’s purpose of writing the text is most likely to _______.
A.describe | B.persuade | C.inform | D.entertain |
When I was a boy,I belonged to the Boy Scouts(童子军),so I used to go camping every summer,and once something happened which I have never been able to explain.
We were camping in a place above a river. After arriving,we all rushed down to the river and had a swim. Standing by the river,we noticed that it was surrounded(环绕)by cliffs(悬崖)。If someone wanted to reach the river at this point,he had to walk past our camp.
Several days later,the scoutmaster had to he away for a day. That afternoon,we had supper early. We were sitting round the fire,eating and talking,when a man walked past and went down towards the river. We all felt that this man looked very strange,but,because each of us was afraid of looking very stupid,no one said anything.
We ate rather slowly,taking as long as possible. After finishing,we collected our plates together so that we could take them to the river where we always washed them. But no one moved towards the river— we stood looking at each other ashamed. Then all shouting at once, we began talking about the man who had walked past us. We agreed how strange he looked and we wondered what he could be doing by the river. We knew that he could only return by passing through our camp.
An hour passed. Then one of the boys suggested we should creep(悄悄移动)down by the river so that we could see what the man was doing. Moving very slowly and keeping in the shadow, we crept down towards the bank. One boy climbed a tree so that he could see everything clearly. He called to us that there was no one there,so we ran down to the bank, looking every-where carefully. We could not understand where the man had gone.
When it got dark,we went back to our camp feeling bewildered. We told the scoutmaster what had happened in the evening. Smiling,he doubted that we had seen the man,but finally suggested we go and look again. We did,but there was no one there.
Many years have passed,but I still remember it as if it were yesterday. What did we see?I do not know. The writer in the text mainly tells us _________.
A.the story of his childhood | B.a strange camping experience |
C.about a stranger by the river | D.about a good place for camping. |
Why did the boys eat their supper slowly?
A.They wanted to delay going to the river bank. |
B.They were sailing for their scoutmaster. |
C.They had a supper earlier than usual. |
D.They were taking while eating. |
The word “bewildered” in the text probably means _________.
A.ashamed | B.nervous |
C.unable to understand | D.eager to know something |
The writer still remembers the event because________.
A.the boys acted foolishly |
B.the camping place is beautiful |
C.there has been no explanation for the event |
D.he particularly enjoyed his camping that summer. |
Everyone’s at it,even my neighbors. I thought I might be the only person left in the world who hadn't done an eBay deal. So,I decided to try my hand at online auction(网上拍卖)。
Buying for beginners:Sign up on www.ebay.co.uk. Most items(e.g. tables, computers, and books) ready for auction will come with a picture and a short description;others may be marked with "Buy It Now" and have a fixed price. You can buy these right away.
If the item is being auctioned,you offer the highest price you are prepared to pay and eBay bids(出价)for you. The bid will be increased little by little until it goes beyond your highest bid,then you are emailed and asked if you would like to bid again. Auctions last up to 10 days and when they finish you get an email telling you whether you have won the item.
How to pay: Sellers decide how they would like to be paid and you need to check this before placing a bid as you might not want to post a cheque or postal orders. The easiest way is through PayPal,an online payment system that takes the money away from your credit card (信用卡)。
Selling made simple:If you plan to sell on eBay,it helps to include a picture of the item. I followed my friends' advice and put up the items I wanted to sell for a 10-day auction,starting on a Thursday. This way, buyers had two weekends to bid.
The big things in life:It' s easy to post a small item,but furniture is a big part of eBay and this has to be collected or sent by deliverymen (邮递员). Check the ways of delivery before you bid. What is the passage mainly about?
A.How to make payment online. |
B.Ways of making delivery online |
C.Advantages of an online-auction system. |
D.How to use an online-auct![]() |
After bidding for an item,a buyer______
A.will get what he wants in ten days |
B.should make payment immediately |
C.has chances to make higher bids |
D.may check its picture and description |
The easiest way of making payment mentioned in the passage is______
A.through an online payment system |
B.through a local banking system |
C.by sending the money to the seller |
D.by paying the deliveryman directly |
The 2012 London Olympics had enough problems to worry about. But one more has just been added --- a communications blackout caused by solar storms.
After a period of calm within the Sun, scientists have detected the signs of a fresh cycle of sunspots that could peak in 2012, just in time for the arrival of the Olympic torch in London.
Now scientists believe that this peak could result in vast solar explosions that could throw billions of tons of charged matter towards the Earth, causing strong solar storms that could jam the telecommunications (通信) satellites and interact links sending five Olympic broadcast from London.
“The Sun’s activity has a strong influence on the Earth. The Olympics could be in the middle of the next solar maximum which could affect the functions of communications satellites,” said Professor Richard Harrison, head of space physics at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory in Oxfordshire.
At the peak of the cycle, violent outbursts called coronal mass ejections (日冕物质抛射) occur in the Sun’s atmosphere, throwing out great quantities of electrically-charged (带电) matter. “A coronal mass ejection can carry a billion tons of solar material into space at over a million kilometers per hour. Such events can expose astronauts to a deadly amount, can disable satellites, cause power failures on Earth and disturb communications,” Professor Harrison added. The risk is greatest during a solar maximum when there is the greatest number of sunspots.
Next week in America, NASA is scheduled to launch a satellite for monitoring solar activity called the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO), which will take images of the Sun that are 10 times clearer than the most advanced televisions available.
The Rutherford Appleton Laboratory helped to make the high-tech cameras that will capture images of the solar flares (太阳耀斑) and explosions as they occur.
Professor Richard Holdaway, the lab’s director, said that the SDO should be able to provide early warning of a solar flare or explosion big enough to affect satellite communications on Earth “If we have advance warning, we’ll be able to reduce the damage. What you don’t want is things switching off for a week with no idea of what’s caused the problem,” he said.
The phrase underlined part in paragraph one most probably refers to _______ during the 2012 Olympics.
A.the state of the Olympic torch being put out |
B.the failure of broadcasting systems |
C.the transportation breakdown in London |
D.the destruction of weather satellites |
What can be inferred about the solar activity described in the passage?
A.The most deadly matter from the corona falls onto Earth. |
B.The solar storm peak occurs in the middle of each cycle. |
C.It takes several seconds for the charged matter to reach Earth. |
D.The number of sunspots decreases after coronal mass ejections. |
Which of the following might be the best title of the passage?
A.Solar Storms: An Invisible Killer |
B.Solar Storms: Earth Environment in Danger |
C.Solar Storms: Threatening the Human Race |
D.![]() |
WASHINGTON — Money can buy happiness, but only if you spend it on someone else, according to researchers.
Spending as little as $5 a day on someone else could significantly boost happiness, the team at the University of British Columbia and Harvard Business School found on Thursday.
Their experiments on more than 630 Americans showed they were measurably happier when they spent money on others --- even if they thought spending the money on themselves would make them happier.
“We wanted to test our theory that how people spend their money is at least as important as how much money they earn,” said Elizabeth Dunn, a psychologist at the University of British Columbia.
They asked their 600 volunteers first to rate their general happiness, report their annual income and detail their monthly spending including bills, gifts for themselves, gifts for others and donations to charity.
“Regardless of how much income each person made, those who spent money on others reported greater happiness, while those who spent more on themselves did not,” Dunn said in a statement.
Dunn’s team also surveyed 16 employees at a company in Boston before and after they received an annual profit-sharing bonus of between $3,000 and $8,000.
“Employees who devoted more of their bonus to pro-social spending experienced greater happiness after receiving the bonus, and the manner in which they spent that bonus was a more important predictor of their happiness than the size of the bonus itself,” they wrote in their report, published in the journal Science.
“Finally, participants who were randomly (随机地) required to spend money on others experienced greater happiness than those required to spend money on themselves,” they said.
They gave their volunteers $5 or $20 and half got clear instructions on how to spend it. Those who spent the money on someone or something else reported feeling happier about it.
“These findings suggest that very minor adjustment in spending allocations (分配) --- as little as $5 --- may be enough to produce real gains in happiness on a given day,” Dunn said.
This could also explain why people are no happier even though US society is richer.
“Indeed, although real incomes have increased dramatically in recent decades, happiness levels have remained largely flat within developed countries across time,” they wrote.
Dune’s experiment on 630 Americans was to ________.
A.help people make careful plans for their money | B.encourage people to be generous to others |
C.see how to spend money is important to happiness | D.![]() |
What can we conclude according to the experiment?
A.Happiness largely depends on the size of your bonus money. |
B.Happiness, as a matter of fact, has nothing to do with money. |
C.The more money you give away, the happier person you will be. |
D.Spending money for the good of society will make you happier. |
How many different ways are used by the researchers to test their theory?
A.Two. | B.Three. | C.Four. | D.Five. |
The last sentence of the passage means _______.
A.happiness does not necessary increase as money grows |
B.people in richer countries actually have more problems |
C.fast economic growth has a bad effect on people’s life |
D.great increase of income contributes to keeping happiness level stable |
LIDAC MAYNARD
11 Windrift Circle
Methuen, MA
978 – 555 – 4539
JOB OBJECTIVE
Seek special education, primary school, or middle school math teaching position.
EDUCATION
Rivier College, Nashua, NH
Bachelor of Arts in Education – May, 2006
Major: Elementary Education
Have successfully completed PRAXIS I and PRAXIS II. Meet highly qualified testing requirements for Massachusetts and New Hampshire.
TEACHING EXPERIENCE
November, 2005 – January, 2006
Wilkins Elementary School, Amherst, NH
Student Teacher
· Developed and completed student–centered lessons in all subject areas for various groups of fifth grade special and regular education students.
· Adapted lessons to meet student’s needs by reviewing their backgrounds and learning needs through IEPs.
· Communicated with parents on a regular basis via newsletters, daily or weekly progress reports, phone calls, and email, resulting in increased parental participation at home.
August, 2005 – November, 2005
Charlotte Avenue Elementary School, Nashua, NH
Student Teacher
· Taught reading and writing through Language Experience Approach methods.
· Introduced a Writer’s Workshop appropriate for first grade students to help them to develop their writing skills.
· Developed learning stations in reading and science, enabling students to be more independent learners.
Spring, 2005
Wilkins Elementary School, Amherst, NH
Designed and taught a unit on Insects and Spiders, based on New Hampshire Standards to 23 self-contained, third and fourth grade students with disabilities.
Fall, 2004
Amherst Street Elementary School, Nashua, NH
Taught a class of 24 third grade students with a wide range of abilities.
ADDITIONAL EXPERIENCE
· After–School Aid, Amherst School District, Amherst, NH (2004 – 2005)
· Summer Camp advisor, YMCA, Nashua, NH (Summers, 2002 and 2003)
· Big Brother / Big Sister Volunteer, Nashua, NH (2002 – 2005)
What kind of job does Linda want to get?
A.A Big Brother / Big Sister Volunteer. | B.A middle school math teacher. |
C.A special education advisor. | D.A summer camp advisor. |
Linda has worked for the following schools EXCEPT ___________.
A.Rivier College, Nashua, NH |
B.Wilkins Elementary School, Amherst, NH |
C.Charlotte Avenue Elementary School, Nashua, NH |
D.Amherst Street Elementary School, Nashua, NH |
What can we know about Linda according to the passage?
A.She is merely interested in developing student’s math abilities. |
B.She is not active in participating in after–school activities. |
C.She is permitted to teach in any of the high schools of New York. |
D.She has some teaching experiences in several elementary schools. |