How to be a better reader
Reading is an extremely important skill.1. Here are some suggestions on how to be a better reader.
Know your reading purpose.2. The kind of reading you do in class or for your homework is different from how you read a novel for pleasure in the summer vacation. If you know your reading purposes， you can choose the best reading methods.
Use all the information in the book. Good textbooks are well-organized with title subtitles， introductions， summaries or conclusions. Many books also have pictures with captions(说明文字).3. Another aspect of good writing is that each paragraph has a topic sentence. If you concentrate on understanding the topic sentence this may help you to understand what comes next.
4. You can't really expect to understand a difficult book if you are trying to read in the same room with the television on and your little brother distracting(使某人分心) you. The same goes for reading on the bus on the way to school. You can't expect to read a textbook and listen to music at the same time either. Try to find a quiet and comfortable place with good light， and your dictionaries and other materials nearby.
Use your dictionary wisely. A common mistake of ESL students is to look up each unknown word in the texts they are given to read.5.It can even make understanding more difficult because by the time you reach the end of the paragraph you have forgotten what you read at the beginning! So use your dictionary wisely.
A. Choose the right time to read.
B. Choose a right place to read.
C. Look at all these first before starting to read.
D. But it takes a long time and can be very boring.
E. The wider your vocabulary is， the easier you will find your reading.
F. Reading is also an excellent way to improve your general English.
G. the way you read a book or a text depends largely on your reasons for reading it.
Imagine that you are in a remote village somewhere with no medical clinic. 1.Once the doctors get to you, they examine you and take blood samples, but they won't be able to help you until they take the samples back to the hospital to find out what is wrong.2. Thanks to engineer Andy Ozcan, many people may never be in this situation. He has invented an app that turns your mobile phone into a diagnostic(诊断的)tool.
Ozcan's invention is important because it is very accurate and easy to use. In many remote places, even if doctors have microscopes and other instruments to help them make diagnoses, there may still be other problems. Many doctors, for example, don’t have enough training to correctly interpret what they see.3.With Ozcan's mobile phone app, health workers can take a special photo of a blood sample and send it to a central computer at a hospital. The computer will then automatically interpret the photo and send a diagnosis back in a few minutes.
4.His technology only requires a mobile phone and an Internet connection. As more than four billion people already have cell phones, the cost of establishing the diagnostic system is fairly low.
By inventing a medical tool that uses existing technology---mobile phones---Ozcan has developed a medical tool that is both practical and economical. Therefore, it can be effectively almost anywhere.5.
A. Another reason that Ozcan's invention is important is that it is inexpensive.
B. Even though you may only have a simple infection (感染), you might die because of the delay.
C. People are trying to reduce the cost of this new medical tool.
D. Ozcan's simple, cost-effective tool might just save millions of lives around the world.
E. This tool has become much more popular all around the world.
F. You become very sick and must wait days until a mobile medical unit arrives to help.
G. As a result, they may diagnose illnesses incorrectly.
This week is Teacher Appreciation Week. That makes it a good time to think of ways to honor the teachers who inspire, educate and care about the students they work with year after year.
1.
An easy way to make teachers feel appreciated is to write them a thank-you note. Be sure to include any favorite parts of their class and anything the teacher did for you that really had an effect on you. "I value notes and letters I receive from my students, their parents and grandparents,"a teacher once said. 2.
Visit A Former Teacher
3. Many teachers mentioned they love seeing and hearing from former students. It makes them realize that their work matters. If you want to visit a former teacher, the best time to go is during their "off-period" or lunch. If you go to a different school and you want to see your former teacher, be sure to email them in advance. Ask when a good time to visit would be.
Put Away Your Cellphone
Putting your cellphone away in class is an easy thing any student can do. It may seem helpful to look up an answer to a question or do research. 4. Try to think hard about an answer before immediately reaching for your phone. Think about how you are staying in the present moment while you're paying attention in class.
Listen And Learn
The teachers interviewed said they had many different struggles and things that made them want to be a teacher. However, they all did agree on one thing. All the teachers mentioned wanting to see their students learn and succeed.This tip hardly requires any action at all. 5.
A. Value Notes and Letters
B. Write A Letter To Say Thank You
C. However, your cellphones can actually seem like a competitor for your teacher.
D. Another simple way to show your appreciation is to visit a teacher you had a few years ago.
E. When teachers are trying to get students to remember concepts, this can be a huge challenge.
F. Just know that when you listen and learn, you'll show your teacher why they do what they do.
G. Seeing the evidence of the positive influence they have had on their students is comforting for teachers.
Four habits of happy people
While the recent research has shown that about 60 percent of our baseline (基本) level of happiness is probably genetically determined, it means 40 percent is under our control. You can’t go back and get new genes.1.. Here are the good habits of happy people.
·Spend time outside. If you can clock 20 minutes a day outside, studies show you’ll not only maintain a better mood, but your mind will be more open and you’ll improve your working memory. 2..
·Exercise regularly. All exercise releases endorphins (脑内肽) in your brain, and if you work out regularly, this mood boosts（增强）even carries over to non-workout days.3.. Mood stays about the same on days they don’t.
4.. A study has confirmed that when people actively try to be happy, they raise their baseline moods, making them feel happier than those who do not try. In the study, two sets of participants listened to “happy” music. Those who actively tried to feel happier reported the highest level of positive mood afterwards.
·Care for others. 5.. Volunteer work is good for both mental and physical health. People of all ages who volunteer are happier and experience better physical health and less depression.
A. Exercise is easy to do.
B. Put effort into being happy.
C. People around you impact your mood.
D. Sunshine and fresh air make you feel good too.
E. But you can start a good morning over with a new attitude.
F. People who spend time every month helping others are happier.
G. On exercise days, people’s mood is significantly improved after exercising.
A baby seal robot from Japan has came to the U.S. It's been sold in Japan for several years, but now the company has created a Florida-based unit, Paro Robots U.S. Inc., to sell the creature to places like nursing homes and hospitals. The robot, named Paro, is marketed as a therapeutic（治疗的）device that can help comfort people who have problems that can lead to social isolation（隔离）.
Takanori Shibata, a Japanese engineer, invented Paro. He says the robot, which weighs about 6 pounds, is able to respond to touch, light, and sound.
Shibata says he tried making robotic cats and dogs, but that people didn't find those convincing. "They expected too much,"' he says, and would compare the robot to real animals they had known. Few people have ever seen a live baby seal, so they aren't likely to draw comparisons between the robot and the real thing. So they accept Paro as a cute little companion.
The Vinson Hall Retirement Community in McLean held a recent event to showcase the robot and Virginia Long slowly came into the activity room. When a nurse put the robot on her lap, it began to shake slightly, and Long talked to it gently. “Why are you shaking? Are you cold?" she asked. The robot made a high sound, and Long laughed. She said she used to have a cat, “but somebody stole him." "Petting a seal is unusual," she said, "but a lot of people have strange animals.
But some experts say a robot is no replacement for a real animal. "One of the things that we've learned is that it is the unexpected and natural behavior of the living creature that adds so much value to people's experience. Any kind of newness can get the attention of people who are lonely and bored, but that doesn't necessarily help them live a meaningful life. It doesn't solve the problem that is really causing their lack of enjoyment of life," says Bill Thomas, a professor at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County.
1.What is the role of Paro?
A.To look after baby seals. B.To give relief to Patients.
C.To replace home-raised pets. D.To Provide medical examinations.
2.How did people feel about robotic cats?
A.Disappointed. B.Astonished.
C.Concerned. D.Amused.
3.What was Long's reaction to Paro?
A.She refused to get close to it. B.She showed it much affection.
C.She regarded it as her new cat. D.She was frightened to talk to it.
4.What do Bill Thomas's words suggest about Paro?
A.It is of great value to people.
B.It is not of great use in solving real problems.
C.It fails to catch older people's interest.
D.It can take the place of a living creature.
Valerie Stull begins her mornings with a breakfast shake, into which she puts peanut butter, cocoa powder, banana, and milk. The last thing to go in is a powder made from insects.
Stull works at the Global Health Institute. She's in a group of researchers who study the impacts of eating insects. There's a name for dining on insects: entomophagy.
About two billion people regularly eat insects. That's almost one in every four. Most North Americans and Europeans tend to find the idea of entomophagy disgusting. Yet even in their parts of the world, insect eating is starting to catch on. That's especially true when the insects are eaten, as Stull's are, in a form that doesn't show their eyes, wings and feet.
"Some scientists view eatable insects as mini-livestock（小型牲畜）.” Compared to raising cattle and more traditional livestock, insects need far less natural resources such as land and water. Insects also are nutritious. They're packed with protein, vitamins and minerals. Plus, their outer shells contain chitin—a source of fiber.
Stull wondered if chitin and other fibers in insects might offer health benefits similar to other fibers found in a typical American diet. To find out, she teamed up with Tiffany Weir, who's a scientist at Colorado State University in Fort Collins. Breakfasts enriched with insects changed the amount of different bacteria in the gut（肠道），the two now report. And those changes were in a direction that should improve a diner's health.
These findings suggest that insects work as prebiotics（益生元）.Scientists think probiotics, which fuel the growth of helpful gut bacteria （肠道细菌），have longer and larger benefits than probiotics（益生菌）do. Probiotics exist in your gut, and you can also add them to your diet. But, Stull explains, “When you have probiotics, you're taking in a whole bunch of beneficial bacteria. But if you don't feed those beneficial bacteria, they're not going to stick around very long."
It's possible that insects offer larger benefits to people who eat them regularly. In a future study, Stull's team would like to test that idea.
1.What can we learn from the underlined sentence in paragraph 3?
A.Insect eating is one of Stull's favorite lifestyles.
B.Insect eating is quite different from entomophagy.
C.Insect eating is becoming more and more acceptable.
D.Insect eating is the most scientific way of getting nutrition.
2.what's the advantage of insect farming compared with traditional livestock farming?
A.It's face-saving. B.It's time-saving.
C.It's labor-saving. D.It's resource-saving.
3.What has Stull and Weir's study found out?
A.Insects are rich in fiber. B.Chitin is similar to other fibers.
C.Eating insects is good for health. D.Insects can keep gut bacteria in balance.
4.How do prebiotics prebioties differ from probiotics?
A.Prebiotics are good bacteria. B.Prebiotics can be added to the diet.
C.Prebiotics need to be fed regularly. D.Prebiotics can inspire good gut bacteria.
