Motherhood may make women smarter and may help prevent dementia(痴呆) in old age by bathing the brain in protective hormones(荷尔蒙) , U.S. researchers reported on Thursday.
Tests on rats show that those who raise two or more litters of pups do considerably better in tests of memory and skills than rats who have no babies, and their brains show changes that suggest they may be protected against diseases such as Alzheimer’s(早老痴呆症). University of Richmond psychology professor Craig Kinsley believes his findings will translate into humans.
“Our research shows that the hormones of pregnancy(怀孕) are protecting the brain, including estrogen(雌激素), which we know has many neuroprotective (保护神经的) effects,” Kinsley said.
“It’s rat data but humans are mammals just like these animals are mammals,” he added in a telephone interview. “They go through pregnancy and hormonal changes.”
Kinsley said he hoped public health officials and researchers will look to see if having had children protects a woman from Alzheimer’s and other forms of age-related brain decline.
“When people think about pregnancy, they think about what happens to babies and the mother from the neck down,” said Kinsley, who presented his findings to the annual meeting of the Society of Neuroscience in Orlando, Florida.
“They do not realize that hormones are washing on the brain. If you look at female animals who have never gone through pregnancy, they act differently toward young. But if she goes through pregnancy, she will sacrifice her life for her infant—that is a great change in her behavior that showed in genetic alterations(改变) to the brain.”
1.What does the phrase “litters of pups” mean in the second paragraph?
A. Baby rats. B. Animals. C. Old rats. D. Grown-up rats.
2.What can protect the brain of a woman according to the passage?
A. Estrogen. B. The hormones of pregnancy.
C. More exercise. D. Taking care of children.
3.“It’s rat data but humans are mammals just like these animals are mammals.” What does the sentence suggest?
A. The experiments on the rats have nothing to do with humans.
B. The experiments on the rats are very important for animals.
C. The experiments on the rats are much the same on humans.
D. The experiments on the rats are much the same on other animals.
4.Which title is the best for this passage?
A. Do You Want to Be Smarter? B. Motherhood Makes Women Smarter
C. Mysterious Hormones D. An Important Study
I told my friend Graham that I often cycle two miles from my house to the town centre but unfortunately there is a big hill on the route．He replied, “You mean fortunately．”He explained that I should be glad of the extra exercise that the hill provided．
My attitude to the hill has now changed．I used to grumble as I approached it but now I tell myself the following．This hill will exercise my heart and lungs．It will help me to lose weight and get fit．It will mean that I live longer．This hill is my friend．Finally I comfort myself with the thought of all those silly people who pay money to go to a gym and sit on stationery exercise bicycles when I can get the same value for free．I have a smile of satisfaction as I reach the top of the hill．
Problems are there to be faced and overcome．We cannot achieve anything with an easy life．Helen Keller was the first deaf and blind person to gain a university degree．Her activism and writing proved inspirational．She wrote，“Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet．Only through experiences of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened，vision cleared，ambition inspired and success achieved.”
One of the main determinants of success in life is our attitude towards adversity(逆境)．From time to time we all face hardships，problems．accidents、afflictions and difficulties．Some are of our making but many confront us through no fault of our own．While we cannot choose the adversity we can choose our attitude towards it．
Douglas Bader was 21 when in 193l he had both legs cut off following a flying accident．He was determined to fly again and went on to become one of the leading flying aces in the Battle of Britain with 22 aerial victories over the Germans．He was an inspiration to others during the war．He said, “Don't listen to any-one who tells you that you can’t do this or that．That's nonsense．Make up your mind，you'll never use crutches(拐杖)or a stick，then have a go at everything．Go to school，join in all the games you can．Go anywhere you want to．But never，never let them persuade you that things are too difficult or impossible.”
The biographies（传记）of great people are full of examples of how they took steps to overcome the difficulties they faced．The common thread is that they did not become depressed．They chose their attitude．They chose to be positive．They took on the challenge．They won．
Nevertheless．there is still the problem of how you change your attitude towards adversity．
1.Which of the following is true according to the author of the passage?
A．Climbing hills on bicycles is the best way to take exercise．
B．People are silly to pay to go to the gym．
C．Those who want to achieve success can't expect to live all easy life．
D．People's attitude towards adversity is the only factor that determines whether they will succeed．
2.By quoting what Douglas Bader said，the author intends to tell us“ ．”
A．Failure is the mother of Success．
B．A fall into the pit，a gain in your wit．
C．If you venture nothing，you will have nothing．
D．Nothing is difficult to the man who will try．
3.Following this passage，the author will further talk about ．
A．how his friend helped him to change his attitude towards the adversity he faced
B．what steps to take to change your attitude towards the adversity you face
C．what great people have in common
D．why it is important to keep optimistic in face of adversity
4.Which of the following can best function as the title of the passage?
A．Face adversity with a smile B．Different attitudes towards adversity
C．Nothing is impossible D．Life is full of adversity
Each Indian(印第安人) was supposed to keep his birth name until he was old enough to earn one for himself. But his playmates(游戏伙伴) would always give him a name of their own. No matter what his parents called him, his childhood friends would use the name they had chosen. Often it was not pleasing, such as Bow Legs or Bad Boy. But sometimes a name fit so well that the youngster found it difficult to shake it off. If he could not earn a better one from a war later, he could be stuck with a name like Bow Legs for the rest of his life.
The Indian earned his real name when he was old enough for his first fight against the enemy. His life name depended on how he acted during this first battle. When he returned from the war, the whole tribe would gather and observe the ceremony in which he would be given his name by the chief. If he had done well, he would get a good name. Otherwise he might be called Crazy Wolf or Man-Afraid-Of-a-Horse. So an Indian’s name told his record or described the kind of man he was.
A man was given many chances to improve his name, however. If in a later battle he was brave in fighting against the enemy, he was given a batter name. Some of our great fighters had as many as twelve names—all good and each better than the last.
An Indian’s names belonged to him for the rest of his life. No one else could use them. Even he himself could not give them away because names were assigned by the tribe, not the family. So no man could pass on his name unless the chief and the tribe asked him to do so.
Sometimes an Indian would be asked to give his name to a son who had performed a noticed deed. I know of only three of four times when this happened. It is the rarest honor for a person—the honor of assuming(承担) his father’ name.
1.An Indian could be given the second name by__________.
A. his father B. the enemy C. the chief of the tribe D. his childhood friends.
2.The greatest honor an Indian could earn was__________.
A. a victory in his first battle against the enemy. B. a name given by the chief.
C. a ceremony to get his real name. D. the right to use his father’ name.
3.If an Indian had more than ten names, it means that___________.
A. many people in the tribe liked him. B. he was a great fighter.
C. he had a lot of friends. D. he had fought in fewer than ten battles.
4.Which of the following statements is not true according to the passage?
A. The names given by the playmates of an Indian were usually not pleasant.
B. The life name of an Indian was earned in battle.
C. An Indian could throw away his birth name when he was old enough to earn one for himself.
D. The Indians themselves were not allowed to give their names away.
Dog owners now have a little help understanding their furry friends．A new device（装置） called Bow-Lingual “translates” dog barks into English, Korean or Japanese．Bow-Lingual Japanese inventors spent much time and money analyzing dog barks．They found that dog noises can be broken down into six different emotions: happiness, sadness, frustration, anger, assertion and desire．
Part of the Bow-Lingual device hangs on the dog’s collar．The other part is a handle-held unit for the owner．When the dog barks, the unit displays translated phrases．
Some people have scoffed at Bow-Lingual．“Who would pay $120 to read a dog’s mind?” they ask．
But those who have purchased（购买） Bow-Lingual praise the device．Pet owner Keiko Egawa, of Japan, says it helps her sympathize（同情） with her dog Harry．“Before we go to the park, he always says he wants to play,” says Egawa, “and after a walk, he always says he is hungry．”
Bow-Lingual is not yet available（可用的） in Chinese．So you’d better keep studying Studio Classroom, or soon your dog may know more English than you do!
1.This passage is mainly talking about _____．
A．Bow-Lingual’s inventors B．dog barks and their different emotions
C．talking dogs D．a little help for dog owners
2.Which of the following sentences is TRUE according to the passage?
A．Dog owners now can understand their dogs better．
B．Bow-Lingual enables dogs to talk in English, Korean or Japanese．
C．People who have used Bow-Lingual say it helps them better understand their dogs．
D．More and more Chinese dog owners would keep studying Studio Classroom in order to know more English than their dogs．
3.What does “scoffed at” mean in the fourth paragraph?
A．Shouted at． B．Questioned about．
C．Laughed at． D．Doubted about．
4.The writer of this passage is most likely to be _____．
A．a reporter B．a dog owner
C．an advertiser D．an expert on dog barks
The job of raising children is a tough one. Children don’t come with an instruction manual(说明书). And each child is 36 . So parents sometimes pull their hair out in frustration(挫折), not 37
what to do. But in raising children—as in all of life—what we do is 38 by our culture. Naturally then, American parents teach their children basic American 39 . To Americans, the goal of parents is to help children 40 on their own two feet. From 41 each child may get his or her own room. As children grow, they get more 42 to make their own choices. 43 choose their own forms of entertainment, as well as the friends to 44 them with. When they 45 young adulthood, they choose their own jobs and marriage 46 . Of course, many young adults still 47
their parents’ advice and approval for the choices they make. But once they “leave the 48 ” at around 18 to 21 years old, they want to be on their own , not 49 to their mother’s apron strings (围裙带). The relationship between parents and children in America is very informal. American parents try to 50 their children as individuals—not as extensions of themselves. They allow them to achieve their own 51 . Americans praise and encourage their children to give them the 52
to succeed. When children become adults, their relationship with their parents becomes more like a (an) 53 among equals. But 54 to popular belief, most adult Americans don’t make their parents pay for room and board when they come to 55 . Even as adult, they respect and honor their parents.
1.A. strange B. different C. new D. unlike
2.A. noticing B. remember C. knowing D. deciding
3.A. influenced B. made C. controlled D. changed
4.A. services B. standards C. rules D. values
5.A. sit B. get C. stand D. rise
6.A. adulthood B. girlhood C. boyhood D. childhood
7.A. freedom B. space C. time D. money
8.A. Adults B. Teenagers C. Americans D. Parents
9.A. help B. join C. share D. provide
10.A. gain B. pass C. become D. reach
11.A. wives B. partners C. husbands D. couples
12.A. seek B. invite C. try D. choose
13.A. room B. house C. nest D. place
14.A. connected B. held C. stuck D. tied
15.A. serve B. treat C. describe D. recognize
16.A. jobs B. plans C. dreams D. hopes
17.A. dependence B. trust C. belief D. confidence
18.A. friendship B. companion C. membership D. association
19.A. known B. similar C. contrary D. due
20.A. travel B. visit C. see D. live
A great number of students said they were forced to practice the piano .
A. to question B. to be questioned C. questioned D. question
