A Charlotte, N.C., man was charged with first-degree murder of a 79-year-old woman whom police said he scared to death. In an attempt to evade policemen after a bank robbery, the Associated Press reports that 20-year-old Larry Whitfield broke into the home of Mary Parnell. Police say he didn’t touch Parnell but that she died after suffering a heart attack that was caused by terror. Can the guy be held responsible for the woman’s death? Prosecutors(公诉人) said that he can under the state’s murder rule, which allows someone to be charged with murder if he or she causes another person’s death while committing or fleeing from a severe crime like robbery—even if he or she doesn’t kill someone on purpose.
But, medically speaking, can someone actually be frightened to death? We asked Martin Samuels, chairman of the neurology department at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston.
Absolutely, no question about it.
The body has a natural protective method called the fight-or-flight response(战或逃反应), which was originally described by Walter Cannon，the chairman of Harvard University’s physiology department from 1906 to 1942. If, in the wild, an animal is faced with a life-threatening situation, the autonomic nervous system responds by increasing heart rate, increasing blood flow to the muscles, and slowing digestion, among other things. All of this increases the chances of succeeding in a fight or running away from an aggressive beast. This process certainly would be of help to primitive humans. However, in the modern world there is obvious decline of the fight-or-flight response.
The autonomic nervous system uses the chemical messenger to send signals to various parts of the body to activate the fight-or-flight response. This chemical is toxic in large amounts; it damages the organs such as the heart, lungs, liver and kidneys. It is believed that almost all sudden deaths are caused by damage to the heart. There is almost no other organ that would fail so fast as to cause sudden death. Kidney failure, liver failure, those things don’t kill you suddenly.
By the way, any strong positive or negative emotions such as happiness or sadness can cause the same result. There are people who have died in intercourse or in religious passion. There was a case of a golfer who hit a hole in one, turned to his partner and said, “I can die now”, and then he dropped dead. For about seven days after the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon there was an increase of sudden cardiac death among New Yorkers.
1.Why the Charlotte, N.C., man was charged?
A. Because he threatened the policemen to kill an old woman.
B. Because he caused an old woman’s terror and she died.
C. Because he beat an old woman and caused her heart attack
D. Because he murdered an old woman while robbing a bank.
2. What is Martin Samuels’ attitude to the possibility of being frightened to death?
A. Approval. B. Disapproval. C. Doubtful. D. Indifferent.
3.Which of the following about the fight-or-flight response is true?
A. The fight-or-flight response was raised and proved by Martin A. Samuels.
B. It is a natural protective method that can’t be found in all creatures but humans.
C. The ancient humans had a superior fight-or-flight response than modern ones.
D. The fight-or-flight response is beneficial to both our actions and organs.
4. What activity can we infer is less likely to damage the organs?
A. Winning a big lottery. B. Missing a dead family.
C. Watching a horror movie. D. Listening to a sweet song.
5.The purpose of the passage is_________.
A. to explain why people will die of a heart attack
B. to offer some advice on protecting us from heart failure
C. to compare different kinds of feelings to cause a death
D. to show strong emotions can cause a sudden death
When I was growing up, I had an old neighbor named Dr. Gibbs. He didn’t look like any doctor I’d ever known. He never yelled at us for playing in his yard. I remember him as someone who was a lot nicer than most of the adults in our community.
When Dr. Gibbs wasn’t saving lives, he was planting trees. His house sat on ten acres, and his life’s goal was to make it a forest.
The good doctor had some interesting theories concerning plant care and growth. He never watered his new trees, which flew in the face of conventional wisdom. Once I asked why. He said that watering plants spoiled them so that each successive tree generation would grow weaker and weaker. So you have to make things rough for them and weed out(淘汰) the weaker trees early on. He talked about how watering trees made for shallow roots, and how trees that weren’t watered had to grow deep roots in search of moisture. I took him to mean that deep roots were to be treasured.
So he never watered his trees. He planted an oak and, instead of watering it every morning, he beat it with a rolled-up newspaper. Smack! Slap! Pow! I asked him why he did that, and he said it was to get the tree’s attention.
Dr. Gibbs passed away a couple of years after I left home. Every now and again, I walked by his house and looked at the trees that I’d watched him plant some twenty-five years ago. They’re extremely tall, big and robust since they have deep roots now. However, the trees in my garden trembled in a cold wind although I had watered them for several years.
It seems that adversity(逆境) and suffering benefit these trees in ways comfort and ease never could. I stood there deep in thought.
Every night before I go to bed, I check on my two sons. I stand over them and watch their little bodies, the rising and falling of life within. I often pray for them. Mostly I pray that their lives will be easy. But I think that it’s time to change my prayer(祷词) because now I know my children are going to encounter hardship.
1.According to Dr. Gibbs’ theories, trees will become weaker if they _________.
A. are lack of care B. are watered C. are weeded out D. are beaten
2.According to Para.3 and Para.4, we can infer that Dr. Gibbs’ motto(座右铭) may be .
A. “Seeing is believing” B. “Put everything in proper use”
C. “Practice makes perfect” D. “No pain, no gain”
3.The underlined word robust in Para.5 most probably means _________.
A. strong B. strange C. deep D. old
4.Which of the following may be the author’s best prayer for his two sons now?
A. I wish them strong wings, with which they can fly higher and touch the sky.
B. I wish them nice fortune so that they can meet people like Dr. Gibbs in the future.
C. I wish them deep roots into the earth since the rains fall and the winds blow often.
D. I wish them great shades under the tree since the sunlight is always sharp and bitter.
5.Which of the following can be the best title of this passage?
A. A Nice Doctor B. The Deep Roots C. Adversity and Suffering D. My Childhood Memory
Would you like to be a king or queen? To have people waiting on you hand and foot? Many Americans experience this royal treatment every day. How? By being customers. The American idea of customer service is to make each customer the center of attention. Need proof? Just listen to the commercials. Most of them sound like the McDonald’s ad: “We do it all for you.” Actually, not all stores in America roll out the red carpet for their customers. But wherever you go, good customer service means making customers feel special.
People going shopping in America can expect to be treated with respect from the very beginning. Most places don’t have a “furniture street” or a “computer road” which allow you to compare prices easily. Instead, people often “let their fingers do the walking” through the store hot lines. From the first “hello”, customers receive a satisfying response to their questions. This initial contact can help them decide where to shop.
When customers get to the store, they are treated as honored guests. Customers don’t usually find store clerks sitting around watching TV or playing cards. Instead, the clerks greet them warmly and offer to help them find what they want. In most stores, the clear signs that label each department make shopping a breeze. Customers usually don’t have to ask how much items cost, since prices are clearly marked. And unless they’re at a flea market or a yard sale, they don’t bother trying to bargain.
When customers are ready to check out, they find the nearest and shortest checkout lane. But as Murphy’s Law would have it, whichever lane they get in, all the other lanes will move faster. Good stores open new checkout lanes when the lanes get too long. Some even offer express lanes for customers with 10 items or less. After they pay for their purchases, customers receive a smile and a warm “thank you” from the clerk. Many stores even allow customers to take their shopping carts out to the parking lot. That way, they don’t have to carry heavy bags out to the car.
1. By quoting (引用) the McDonald’s ad: “We do it all for you”, the author intends to_______.
A. suggest that customers believe what commercials say deeply
B. show readers the American idea on good customer service
C. express all the stores pay much attention to the customers
D. persuade readers to choose the stores with ads correctly
2.In the USA, what may you do at first if you want to do some shopping?
A. To visit a professional street with lots of similar stores.
B. To compare prices in many shops in the same street.
C. To make phone calls and get better shopping choices.
D. To receive other customers’ answers to the questions.
3.The underlined words “a breeze” in Para.3 most probably means _________.
A. an easy job B. a trouble C. a funny thing D. a boring task
4.Which of the followings shows American stores offer convenience to customers in this passage?
A. The store clerks don’t usually sit around watching TV or playing cards.
B. Some stores offer price bargain to the customers like a yard sale.
C. The clerks give customers a smile and a warm “thank you” after paying.
D. Some stores open new checkout lanes when the lanes are crowded.
5.Which of the following can be the best title of this passage?
A. Customer Service in America B. Excellent Stores in America
C. Shopping Rules in America D. Being King or Queen in America
“Any time! Any where! Decades ago there was no such thing” – “Communication”.
Then, September 7th 1987, the global system for mobile communication or GSM was born. And international agreements that laid out the standards, regulations and practices gave rise to a global mobile phone industry.
To be honest, the world’s first mobiles were not so attractive and the range of effectiveness wasn’t very good. But they became a must-have among those wealthy people who could afford that. However, by advantage of GSM which has many different elements to it, we can all enjoy the ability to go around the world in 217 countries, land in that country and know that a phone would work.
There are other cell phone systems using different technology in the world. The majority of the United States and parts of South America have been using something called CDMA which is very rare in Europe. In some Asian countries like China, GSM and CDMA both exist at the same time. But the GSM Association claims 85% of the global mobile phone market. They estimated there are now about 2.5 billion different users who make more than 7 trillion minutes of calls everyday, and that’s not all.
20 years later, the mobile phone is so much more than just a phone. You can use it to send text messages, take pictures, show video, even surf the internet.
“The phone itself is involved from just being a communication tool, to be a tool for round-the-clock connectivity, you can not live without it even in a minute.” Mobile consultant Nick Lane also points out with so many customized styles and features, your mobile phone will become a symbol of you.
Where will the global mobile phone industry be in another 20 years? Certainly, there will be more connections than better coverage. As for where else technology will take us, one can only imagine.
1.According the passage, we can know that GSM is ____________.
A. a global-used mobile phone B. a global mobile phone industry
C. a global mobile phone association D. a global mobile communication system
2.It's most difficult to find a CDMA mobile phone in ____________.
A. the United States B. South America C. Europe D. China
3.From this passage, we can infer that ____________.
A. as soon as the first mobiles appeared, they became popular and many people have one
B. with a GSM mobile phone, you can make a phone call in most parts of the USA
C. there are only two cell phone systems in the whole world: GSM and CDMA
D. most of the mobile phone users in the world now are using the GSM mobile phone
4.By pointing out “your mobile phone will become a symbol of you”, what does Nick Lane want to tell us about the mobile phone in the future?
A. You can have a mobile phone with the unique look and functions as you like.
B. Others can find us without any difficulties if we carry our mobile phone.
C. The mobile phone can be used as a permit when you enter some places.
D. The mobile phone we carry can show others how wealthy we are.
5.What does the writer feel about the GSM development in the following 20 years?
A. Satisfied. B. Worried. C. Confident. D. Confused.
Last year , my daughter was diagnosed with leukemia(白血病).
It is still hard to write that word. 16 is even harder to say it out loud, because it feels like that will make it more real. Although I wish I could either change the diagnosis 17
deny it altogether, this is what we’re facing. Every time we think about what her tiny body is doing to her, it 18 (break) our heart a little bit more. This is my worst nightmare.
But my husband and I are saying many thanks to God that her disease is the 19 (much)
common form of all the childhood blood cancers, which comes with an 85~90% cure rate. We believe that she is in that 90%, but we know there’s still a long road ahead 20 us.
21 (thank), she’s not in any pain, other than a little soreness from a recent procedure. And since she’s 4, she doesn’t quite understand 22 is happening at all. She is in good spirits, 23 helps us cope more than we realized it would. It also helps that she is in such 24 great hospital, specifically for children. They have done a great job, saving my daughter’s life and 25 (make) us go through the hard time as well.
In a city of south India lived a young man who was always dreaming of becoming rich. He often heard about some traders in his city who gathered a great deal of 1 in the course of their travels across the world. He believed he could also make a great achievement although he didn’t have any 2 in business at all. So, one fine day, the young man set out on a long 3
in search of trade opportunities.
4 though, he did not become as rich as he had thought he would. Worse, he spent more money on his travels than he 5 in the course of his trade. All this made him feel confused and 6 , but he refused to return home without 7 .
One day, while he was wandering on the shore in a seaside town, his eyes 8 on an object which he thought should be a large ship at a distance.
“When I become rich, I shall buy a ship just like that one and 9 around the world,” he said ambitiously. Then he waited to see the ship enter the harbor. As the ship got closer, it lost its 10 dimensions(规模) and looked more like a small boat. When the boat reached the 11 , the young man let out a big heavy sigh because he discovered that it was only a bunch of logs tied together. He was terribly 12 to see such a raft(木筏).
Finally he understood. Just as he 13 a lot of time on fruitless speculation(猜想) about the “ship”, his expectations of getting 14 was also without any real basis. Therefore, he decided to return home and 15 up a more practical job.
1. A. energy B. knowledge C. resource D. fortune
2. A. expectation B. experience C. interest D. ambition
3. A. journey B. partnership C. vacation D. period
4. A. Unreasonably B. Unbelievably C. Unconsciously D. Unfortunately
5. A. begged B. borrowed C. earned D. adopted
6. A. uncertain B. excited C. patient D. indifferent
7. A. hesitation B. success C. problem D. income
8. A. depended B. focused C. insisted D. lived
9. A. show B. turn C. sail D. fly
10. A. correct B. formal C. real D. grand
11. A. bank B. shore C. ocean D. bottom
12. A. disappointed B. pleased C. puzzled D. astonished
13. A. saved B. valued C. wasted D. created
14. A. rich B. learned C. smart D. strong
15. A. set B. gave C. made D. took
