For grown-ups, an afternoon snooze (打盹) is often easier said than done. But many of us have probably experienced just how simple it can be to catch some sleep in a gently rocking hammock (吊床). By examining brain waves in sleeping adults, researchers reported in the June 21 issue of Current Biology, a Cell Press publication, that they now have evidence to explain why that is.
“It is a common belief that rocking causes sleep: we fall asleep in a rocking chair soon and, since ancient times, we cradle our babies to sleep,” said Sophie Schwartz of the University of Geneva. “Yet, how this works had remained a mystery. The goal of our study was made up of two parts: to test whether rocking does indeed improve sleep, and to understand how this might work at the brain level.”
Schwartz, Michel Mühlethaler, and their colleagues Laurence Bayer and Irina Constantinescu asked twelve adult volunteers to nap on a custommade bed or “experimental hammock” that could either remain still or rock gently. All participants were good sleepers who didn’t typically nap and did not suffer from excessive sleepiness during the day. Each participant took two 45•minute afternoon naps, one with the bed still and one with the bed in motion, while their brain activity was monitored.
“We observed a faster transition to sleep in each and every subject in the swinging condition,” Mühlethaler said. “Surprisingly, we also observed a dramatic boosting of certain types of sleeprelated brain waves.”
More specifically, rocking increased the length of stage N2 sleep, a form of non•rapid eye movement sleep that normally occupies about half of a good night’s sleep. The rocking bed also had a lasting effect on brain activity, increasing slow brain waves and bursts of activity known as sleep spindles (纺锤体).
Schwartz and Mühlethaler say the next step is to find out whether rocking can improve longer periods of sleep and to find out whether it may be useful for the treatment of sleep disorders, such as insomnia (失眠).
1.What does the June 21 issue of Current Biology tell us according to Paragraph 1?
A.It is more difficult for grown•ups to fall asleep.
B.People today like to sleep in a rocking hammock.
C.Many people nowadays suffer from excessive sleepiness.
D.There comes the evidence for why rocking benefits people’s sleep.
2.What can we learn from Sophie Schwartz’s words?
A.Her team aimed to answer two questions.
B.The study is going to benefit babies a lot.
C.The study had been kept secret before being finished.
D.People used to believe rocking was bad for sleep.
3.What finding was beyond the researchers’ expectation?
A.The rocking seemed to improve participants’ sleep quality.
B.All the participants fell asleep faster in the swinging condition.
C.Some participants couldn’t fall asleep in the swinging condition.
D.Participants had a tendency to sleep excessively in the swinging bed.
4.What is the best title?
A.Take a Snooze Easier Said than Done
B.Want a Faster Sleep? Change Your Sleeping Habits
C.Need a Nap? Find Yourself a Hammock
D.Suffer from Sleep Disorder? New Treatment Found
This season, the bushfires in Australia have burned more than 12.35 million acres of land. At least 25 people have been killed and 2000 homes destroyed. According to the BBC, this is the most casualties(伤亡) from wildfires in the country since 2009. The University of Sydney estimates that 480 million animals have died in South Wales alone.
Zeke Hausfather, an energy systems analyst and climate researcher at Berkeley Earth, said warmer temperatures and extreme weather have made Australia more susceptible to fires and increased the length of the fire season. “The drier conditions combined with record high temperatures in 2019 created main conditions for the disastrous fires. Australia’s fires were worsened by the combination of those two. 2019 was the perfect storm for being the warmest year on record for Australia and the driest year on record for Australia,” Hausfather added on Friday.
Kevin Trenberth, a senior scientist at the US National Center for Atmospheric Research, said warmer ocean temperatures are also contributed to more variable weather around the world. Trenberth believes that global warming contributed to energy imbalances and hot spots in the oceans, which can create a wave in the atmosphere that locks weather patterns in places, causing longer rain events in Indonesia, for example, and at the same time contributing to drought in Australia. He said that once an area experiences drought conditions for two months or more, it increases the risk of fires catching and spreading. Those changing weather patterns due to global warming make drought events longer.
Climate experts stress that climate change is not the only factor in the severity of wildfires. How land is managed can also impact the amount of fuel available for fires. Practices like controlled burns and other factors can impact the risk to people and property, such as warning systems and the type of development in a given area. Changing those policies has great potential to limit future damage from wildfires along with changes to how fire management resources are dispatched(派遣).
1.What do the numbers in paragraph 1 show?
A.The causes of Australian fires.
B.The results of Australian fires.
C.The damaged areas of Australian fires.
D.The property destruction of Australian fires.
2.Which of the following best explains “more susceptible to” underlined in the second paragraph?
A.Quick to adapt to. B.Sure to cause.
C.Sensitive to. D.Easy to be protected from.
3.What can we infer from Trenberth's research?
A.Global warming is the root cause of the bushfires.
B.Longer dry weather contributes to global warming.
C.Warmer ocean temperatures promote fires spreading.
D.The imbalanced energy leads to the temperature rising.
4.What does the author intend to do in the last paragraph?
A.To stress the effects of Australia fires.
B.To show the methods for controlling burns.
C.To predict the seriousness of Australia fires.
D.To provide some advice about reducing damage.
It was the small hours of the morning when we reached London Airport. I had cabled London from Amsterdam, and there was a hired car to meet, but there was one more unfortunate happening before I reached my flat. In all my travels I have never, but for that once, been required by the British customs to open a single bag or to do more than state that I carried no goods liable to duty. It was, of course, my fault; the extreme tiredness and nervous tension of the journey had destroyed my diplomacy (外交). I was, for whichever reason, so tired that I could hardly stand, and to the question, “have you read this?” I replied with extreme foolishness, “yes, hundreds of times.”
“And you have nothing to declare?” “Nothing.”
“How long have you been out of this country?” “About three months.”
“And during that time you have acquired nothing?” “Nothing but what is on the list I have given you.”
He seemed momentarily at a loss, but then he attacked. The attack, when it came, was utterly unexpected. “Where did you get that watch?’
I could have kicked myself. Two days before, when playing water games with a friend in the bath, I had forgotten to take off my ROLEX, and it had, not unnaturally, stopped. I had gone into the market and bought, for twelve shillings and six pence, an ugly time piece that made a strange noise. It had stopped twice, without any reason, during the journey.
I explained, but I had already lost face. I produced my own watch from a pocket, and added that I should be grateful if he would confiscate (没收) the replacement.
“It is not a question of confiscation,” he said, “there is a fine for failing to declare dutiable goods. And now may I please examine that Rolex?”
It took another quarter of an hour to persuade him that the Rolex was not contraband (走私货). Just when I let out a sigh of relief, he began to search my luggage!
1.When did the writer arrive at London Airport?
A.In the early morning. B.Late at night.
C.At noon. D.Late in the morning.
2.What can we conclude from the questions asked by the customs officer?
A.He was just doing his duty by asking the passenger some usual questions.
B.He must have noticed the writer's ugly watch.
C.He wanted to embarrass the writer.
D.He must have noticed the writer's tiredness.
3.What did the writer think of the watch he bought in the market?
A.He was fond of the watch because it was a Rolex.
B.He found the watch useful though it was very cheap.
C.He didn't like the watch at all.
D.He was interested in the watch.
4.After reading the story we can infer that the writer ______.
A.knew little about the customs regulations
B.spent a long time at the customs but was not fined
C.was punished because of carrying many contraband goods
D.must have failed in catching the hired car
Stagecoach Buses — Popular tickets
Dayrider
Travel as much as you like in one day.
With Stagecoach Dayrider bus tickets you can make as many journeys as you like for one day. They offer more value for money than buying a single or return, as you can travel on all Stagecoach buses within your chosen ticket zone. Buy tickets using the Stagecoach Bus App or buy on the bus. with contactless payments now available on all our buses, you don't need to worry about finding the correct change
Bus and Boat
Unlimited bus travel for one car in the selected zone, plus a boat ride
Explore the countryside on bus and then enjoy the fine mountain views from the comfort of a boat deck. You can board one of our many boats or steamers located at four of the districts most outstanding lakes. Stagecoach have combined bus boat tickets which are available for Coniston, Detwent Water, Ullswater and Windermere
Sightseeing Tickets
Never get lost and don't miss a thing.
Hop-on and hop-off all day as much as you like at any of the bus stops on the route and see all the best sights and attractions your chosen town or city has to offer. You'll also leam lots of history along the way from one of our expert guides
Student Tickets
Flexible student bus tickets
Are you a student and getting ready for the new term? You can travel for a lot less with Stagecoach's student bus tickets. You'll need a current student ID card with a photo to buy a Stagecoach student ticket. The name on your ID card will need to match the name on your ticket.
1.What is true about the “Dayrider” ticket?
A.You need the correct change to buy it.
B.You can use it to travel anywhere in the city.
C.It can be purchased with your mobile phone.
D.It can be used with any bus company.
2.If you want to go sightseeing around of the lake areas, which ticket is the most suitable?
A.Dayrider. B.Bus and Boat.
C.Sightseeing. D.Student tickets.
3.What is needed if you want to buy a student ticket?
A.A photo of yourself. B.Your name.
C.The bus app. D.Valid student ID.
假定你是“古风社”( Ancient Society)社长李华。新学期伊始，古风社要招募新成员，你得知你的美国朋友Jerry希望加入。请你给Jerry 写一封信，邀请他参加招募新成员的面试。
要点如下:1.时间，地点；2.面试要求；3.表示期待。
注意：1.词数100左右；
2.可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
Dear Jerry,
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Yours,
Li Hua
假定英语课上老师要求同桌之间交换修改作文，请你修改你同桌写的以下作文。文中共有10处错误，每句中最多有两处。错误涉及一个单词的增加、删除或修改。
增加:在缺词处加一个漏词符号( ∧)，并在其下面写出该加的词。
删除:把多余的词用斜线( \ )、划掉。
修改:在错的词下划一横线，并在该词下面写出修改后的词。
注意: 1. 每处错误及其修改均限一词；
2.只允许修改10处，多者(从第11处起)不计分。
Today is our graduation day, it marks the end of our senior high school but the beginning of a new life for all of us. We supposed to feel joyful on such an unforgettable day and being full of hope for the future. I am deeply moving by these things on the day, and I feel more, either. It is at this moment that I realize that I have to say good-bye to my school, my classmates and my teacher. The thing I desire to do most is to express how thankfully I am to my teachers and parents. I will always remember that what they have done for me. I will thank them from the bottom of your heart.
