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Ants: master cooperators
Millions of ants live together in a colony, but they don’t compete, get confused, or become disorganized. They behave in an amazing orderly manner at all times. Some scientists refer to ants as ‘super-organisms’ because they live in such highly organized societies that work together to survive. The way ants live and work together has made them one of the most important creatures on the planet.
Ants, like bees, belong to a class of eusocial insects. Eusocial insects are broken into groups within their community, and each group has a special job to do depending on the needs of the community. There are three basic groups in an ant colony: queens, soldiers, and workers. Queens are the largest ants, and their only job is to reproduce—they lay all of the eggs that will eventually become soldiers and workers. Soldiers are responsible for protecting the colony and finding new places for nests. Worker ants have many jobs within the community, including caring for the eggs and young ants, hunting for food and maintaining the nest.
Some scientists are studying how ants can lead to a better understanding of labor issues, social class, and the use of nature resources in human communities. Ants have had millions of years of practice in working together to survive and grow. For a colony to function successfully, ants have to cooperate, from which people can learn a lot. Researchers hope that gathering information about how ants live together in communities can help people learn to cooperate and compromise with each other.
However, others argue that there are fundamental differences between ants and humans that mean human societies are unlikely ever to attain ant-like levels of collaboration. For example, ants in a colony don’t compete with each other. When they are short of food in the colony, some worker ants automatically become ‘feeder’ ants and feed others with the food in their stomach, regardless of their usual job. When the food supply is replenished, they become worker ants again.
In addition, ants are able to work together without a leader giving them directions. Despite their names, queen ants are not leaders. Instead, ants find out what they need to do from their sense of smell. Research on harvester ants pass each other, they pick up a chemical smell which tells them what the other ant is doing. The number of ants they pass doing a particular job determines what they need to do. It is a form of communication, but unlike human communication it has no content; it is just based on numbers.
While ants undoubtedly have a great deal to teach us about organization and the structure of networks, those searching for a greater understanding of human behaviour and morals may need to look somewhere.
Ants: master cooperators | |
Main 1. | They live together in colony without competitions, 2. or being disorganized. |
The way they work together for 3. living in highly organized societies makes them unique on the planet. | |
Three groups, including queens, soldiers and workers in an ant colony have a special job, 4. the needs of the community. | |
5. of studying ants | It helps people understand labor issues, social class, and the use of natural resources better. |
Ants are 6. in working together to survive and grow, helping people run the communities smoothly. | |
It helps people learn to cooperate and 7. with each other. | |
Differences between ants and humans | For 8. of food, some worker ants automatically become ‘feeder’ ants. |
9. ants, humans have leaders giving people directions. | |
Suggestion | Researchers should have different 10. in understanding human behaviour and morals. |
As time went on, Philip’s deformity was accepted like one boy’s red hair and another’s unreasonable obesity. But meanwhile he had grown horribly sensitive. He never ran if he could help it, because he knew it made his limp more noticeable. He stood still as much as he could, with his badly shaped foot behind the other. Because he could not join in the games which other boys played, their life remained strange to him; Sometimes they seemed to think that it was his fault if he could not play football, and he was unable to make them understand. He was left a good deal to himself. He had been inclined to talkativeness, but gradually he became silent.
The biggest boy in his dormitory, Singer, took a dislike to him, and Philip, small for his age, had to put up with a good deal of hard treatment. About half-way through the term there was a game called Nibs. It was a game for two, played on a table or a form with steel pens. Soon nothing was seen but boys playing this game, and the more skilful acquired vast stores of nibs. But in a little while Mr. Watson made up his mind that it was a form of gambling, and forbade the game. Then he ordered all the nibs in the boys’ possession be handed in. Philip had been very skilful, and it was with a heavy heart that he gave up his winning; but his fingers itched to play still, and a few days later, on his way to the football field, he went into a shop and bought a pennyworth of J pens. He carried them loose in his pocket and enjoyed feeling them. Presently Singer found out that he had them. Singer had given up his nibs too, but he had kept back a very large one, called a Jumbo, which was almost unconquerable, and he could not resist the opportunity of getting Philip’s Js out of him. Though Philip knew that he was at a disadvantage with his small nibs, he had an adventurous disposition and was willing to take the risk; besides, he was aware that Singer would not allow him to refuse. He had not played for a week and sat down to the game now with a thrill of excitement. He lost two of his small nibs quickly, and Singer was jubilant, but the third time by some chance the Jumbo slipped round and Philip was able to push his J across it. He crowed with triumph. At that moment Mr. Watson came in.
‘What are you doing?’ he asked.
He looked from Singer to Philip, but neither answered.
‘Don’t you know that I’ve forbidden you to play that game?’
Philip’s heart beat fast. He knew what was coming and was dreadfully frightened, but in his fright there was a certain exultation. He had never been swished. Of course it would hurt, but it was something to boast about afterwards.
‘Come into my study.’
The headmaster turned, and they followed him side by side. Singer whispered to Philip:
‘We’re in for it.’
Mr. Watson pointed to Singer.
‘Bend over,’ he said.
Philip, very white, saw the boy quiver at each stroke, and after the third he heard him cry out. Three more followed.
‘That’ll do. Get up.’
Singer stood up. The tears were streaming down his face. Philip stepped forward. Mr. Watson looked at him for a moment.
‘I’m not going to beat you. You’re a new boy. And I can’t hit a cripple. Go away, both of you, and don’t be naughty again.’
When they got back into the school-room a group of boys, were waiting for them. They set upon Singer at once with eager questions. But he did not answer. He was angry because he had been hurt.
‘Don’t ask me to play Nibs with you again,’ he said to Philip. ‘It’s jolly nice for you. You don’t risk anything.’
‘I didn’t ask you.’
‘Didn’t you!’
He quickly put out his foot and tripped Philip up. Philip was always rather unsteady on his feet, and he fell heavily to the ground.
‘Cripple,’ said Singer.
For the rest of the term he tormented Philip cruelly, and, though Philip tried to keep out of his way, the school was so small that it was impossible; he tried being friendly and jolly with him; he abased himself, so far as to buy him a knife; but though Singer took the knife he was not placated. Once or twice, driven beyond endurance, he hit and kicked the bigger boy, but Singer was so much stronger that Philip was helpless, and he was always forced after more or less torture to beg his pardon. It was that which rankled with Philip: he could not bear the humiliation of apologies, which were wrung from him by pain greater than he could bear. And what made it worse was that there seemed no end to his wretchedness; Singer was only eleven and would not go to the upper school till he was thirteen. Philip realized that he must live two years with a tormentor from whom there was no escape. He was only happy while he was studying and when he got into bed. And often there recurred to him then that queer feeling that his life with all its misery was nothing but a dream, and that he would awake in the morning in his own little bed in London.
1.Why did Philip put his badly shaped foot behind the other?
A. Because he could maintain a balance.
B. Because he fell into that particular habit.
C. Because he had a strong desire to fit in with others.
D. Because he wanted to escape any reference to it.
2.It can be safely inferred about the game Nibs that _______.
A. the game amounted to much as to Mr Watson
B. the game was very fashionable among the boys
C. the game was the only way for Philip to socialize with others
D. the game favored those who were the most patient and skilful
3.According to the passage, which is the right order about the following events ?
a. Singer challenged Philip to the game Nibs.
b. Mr Watson took away all the boys’ nibs.
c. Singer tripped Philip over on purpose.
d. Singer was beaten by Mr Watson bitterly.
e. Philip couldn’t help but submit to Singer.
A. b-a-c-d-e B. b-d-a-c-e
C. b-d-a-e-c D. b-a-d-c-e
4.Which of the following can best describe the character of Philip?
A. Fragile and frustrated. B. Depressive but strong-willed.
C. Talkative and adventurous. D. Aggressive but independent.
5.What does the underlined sentence show?
A. Mr Watson showed sympathy for Philip.
B. Mr Watson discriminated in favor of Philip.
C. Mr Watson looked down upon Philip.
D. Mr Watson expected none of Philip.
6.What can we learn from the passage about Philip?
A. He didn’t intend to make up with Singer.
B. He felt inferior and left out.
C. He was negative about his future in the end.
D. He didn’t take pleasure in studying.
It is a psychological strategy that all parents will be familiar with: instead of scolding an misbehaving child, focus instead in rewarding them for good behaviour.
Now the idea is well received outside the nursery, with implications for everything from recycling clothes to policing.
Consumers end up with piles of unwanted clothes. Every year in the UK, 300,000 tonnes ends up in landfill — 235 million individual items.
Now however, apps such as ReGain, Regive and Stuffstr are making it simpler — and more worthwhile — for people to return their unwanted clobber.
The ReGain app can be used to find one of 20,000 drop-off points. In return, the diligent consumer earns rewards such as discount coupons for high street retailers. Stuffstr works in partnership with John Lewis to help people get cash in return for unwanted items from the chain.
“Possibly the one prediction that we economists get right is that if you incentivise (激励) a behaviour, you will get more of it,” says Dr Matthew Levy, a lecturer in economics at the London School of Economics.
He cites research, including his own, showing that financial incentives encouraging regular exercise, stopping smoking and losing weight effectively promote healthy behaviours and that there is no backlash when the incentives are removed.“If anything, the incentives can be used to jump-start a healthy habit that keeps going,”he says.
In the four months after its launch, the ReGain scheme received almost 17,000 parcels containing 47 tonnes of used clothes and shoes, of which 95% could potentially be reused, according to its founder Jack Ostrowski.
“We need to find a way to influence behaviour, and discount coupons help,” he says. The platform is also working with brands and retailers to find ways to divert used clothes from landfills and into the production of new clothes, he adds.
Other reward schemes have had success in encouraging behavioural change.
When police in Canada issued“positive tickets”— coupons for free food or movie tickets — to reward good behaviour among young people, they reported an almost 50% drop in youth-related service calls.
“My officers would say‘In the old days we’d drive up in the police car and the kids would run away from us, now they run to us’.”
In a similar venture, Hull city council have announced plans to launch a digital reward token — the HullCoin — that can be earned by volunteering and spent at local retailers.
Elsewhere, a study on the recruitment of health workers in Zambia found that highlighting economic incentives during the recruitment process caused future employees to be more motivated and task-focused.
“Obviously different groups are motivated by different factors,” says Ostrowski. “For some, the‘feel good’factor is enough, and for others, that reward stimulus is required.”
1.Dr Matthew Levy might agree that______.
A. there is an undesired effect when the incentives are removed
B. economists always make some predictions to convince people
C. used clothes would be recycled via incentives, otherwise in landfill
D. financial incentives are the key to people’s getting rid of bad habits
2.The benefits of financial stimulus are mentioned EXCEPT ______.
A. increasing the sales of clothing and food
B. young people’s behaving well in public
C. leading to people’s disgust at smoking
D. future employees’ concentrating on tasks
3.It can be inferred from the passage that___________.
A. ReGain helps consumers get rewards from John Lewis
B. ReGain has the biggest share in the 20,000 drop-off points
C. ReGain has the absolute advantage over Regive and Stuffstr
D. ReGain plays a positive role in making for recycling clothes
4.What can be the best title?
A. Use carrots, Not sticks B. The magic of reward coupon
C. The better you are, the more you’ll get D. Positive or Negative
Our cities have never been denser, taller, or busier than they are now, and with that, comes the constant battle for land. But if we look at aerial images of any city center, we can quickly spot plenty of unused space — the rooftops.
So what can we use this precious resource for? In a growing number of high-density cities, some of it is dedicated to recreation — everything from bars and pools, to soccer pitches and running tracks can now be found atop skyscrapers. But when a rooftop offers access to sunlight, there are two more obvious candidates for its use - agriculture and solar power.
Green roofs have been growing in popularity for more than a decade, and in some cases, growing in scale too. Green roofs can provide a habitat for birds and insects in an otherwise hostile environment.
Cities can be several degrees warmer than the surrounding countryside. Green roofs come with the added benefit of mitigating the dreaded urban heat island effect. Trees and green spaces can absorb shortwave radiation, and use it to evaporate water from their leaves — a kind of ‘double cooling’ effect.
With food security and urban nutrition ever-higher on the agenda for the United Nations, there’s also a worldwide movement of using green roofs for hyper-local food production. In regions with suitable climates, hundreds of different vegetables, fruits, and salad leaves can be grown on rooftops.
But what about solar power? With so many cities now stopping using fossil fuels, and the costs of solar panels dropping dramatically, PV systems have become the ‘go to’ option for generating distributed power in built-up areas. And, even with standard commercial panels, the energy gains are dramatic. It is estimated that rooftop PV systems could generate almost 40% of electricity demands nationwide.
There’s no doubt that in both cases, a network of ‘productive rooftops’ could benefit the local community by supplying a portion of a necessary resource — either food or electricity — while also reducing their environmental burden. But is one better than the other?
This was the question posed by researchers from MIT and the University of Lisbon in a recent paper in the journal Cities. Focusing on the rooftops of a mixed-use neighborhood in Lisbon, they carried out a Cost-Benefit Analysis. Starting with existing data on everything from installation costs and resources used, to carbon footprint and yield, they modelled the impact that each installation would have on the local community over a period of 50 years.
And by looking at it that way, they concluded that for Lisbon, the use of rooftops for food production could yield significantly higher local value than solar PV energy generation. Of course, this is very site-specific. There is no one-size-fits-all solution to make cities more sustainable, and anyone who tells you otherwise is massively over-simplifying a complex issue. Now, all I hope is that some of those decision makers start using it.
1.According to the passage, green roofs don’t make a difference to ______.
A. medicine B. agriculture
C. electricity D. ecology
2.What does the underlined sentence mean in the last paragraph ?
A. Lisbon is the perfect targeted city for researchers.
B. In another city, the opposite conclusion can be drawn.
C. The conclusion about Lisbon can apply to all other cities.
D. It doesn’t make sense to install rooftop PV systems in Lisbon.
3.The author writes this article in order to ___________.
A. instruct decision makers what to do
B. inform us of the rise of urban rooftops
C. predict two fields where we can use rooftops
D. persuade us to make cities more sustainable
BackJoy Orthotic Seat: Easy, Drug-Free Relief from Back Pain
Why BackJoy?
BackJoy is an innovative device that provides relief from back discomfort by aiding in maintaining your posture (姿势) anywhere you sit, hard or soft seats.
● Proven effective � over 2.0 million units sold, durable to provide long-lasting support
● Recommended by doctors and nurses
● Safe and effective � a natural alternative
Back Pain Is A Problem!
● We average over 9+ hours of sitting each day!
● 80% of adults will suffer from back pain in their life
● Back pain is the No. 2 reason for visiting the doctor
● Mom was right: “Sit up straight!”
How to use
BackJoy is made small on purpose. It is designed to cradle the space around the two sitting bones at the base of your pelvis and must be smaller than your buttocks to do so.
● Sit on top of it
Handle goes in front and between your legs
● Pull it tight & cup to fit
Feel it cup & lift your hips above the seat from below you
1.Which of the following statements is True?
A. You will be free of back pain after you use BackJoy.
B. Most of the users will experience immediate relief.
C. 94% of the doctors and nurses recommend it to others.
D. A majority of adults experience pain back in their life.
2.It can be inferred that______.
A. BackJoy doesn’t work on soft couches
B. BackJoy works for any health condition
C. BackJoy can help users to adjust the way they are sitting
D. BackJoy doesn’t work for adults weighing less than 90lbs
When Lyndsay and Matthew took home their newborn twins a few days after Christmas 2016, they knew that baby William’s days would be short. ______ he looked perfect and healthy, he had a severe heart defect, ______ in the womb.
“It was one of the ______ days of my life when we found out that we would lose our son ______ months still left in my pregnancy, but because at that time we were able to _____ ourselves,” said Lyndsay. “My husband and I both have a strong ______ in God and through prayer, we felt God’s love, peace, and ______.” She said that the love and help from family and friends have been ______ in their journey.
One friend made a special ______. Knowing how important it was to document his short life, a family friend ______ to a Toledo photographer she followed on Facebook.
“The days with both of our babies at home together were ______,” said Lyndsay. “We tried our best to focus on enjoying the time together and creating ______. We were able to do this and felt like God blessed us with the time to get to know our son.”
And although Lyndsay_______ hesitated to do a photo shoot, now she says she’s so glad she did.
“The photos are going to be even more important as time goes on,” said Brentlinger. “ I can
____ on our time with our whole family together and remember our newborn son with the
____ big eyes. His twin sister, Reagan , will be able to see the love and special ______ they shared together.”
What ______ Brown, the photographer were the parents and the strength and love they displayed during the shoot.
“The parents were extremely strong ,” Brown said. “ They ______ acted and treated both babies like nothing was wrong. So that ______ my heart watching them. We sort of lost it in the very end... Then the tears just started ______.”
William is a gift for his twin sister, his parents and everybody. Surrounded by love, life is eternal.
1.A. Even though B. As though C. Unless D. In case
2.A. realized B. recognized C. identified D. induced
3.A. wildest B. worst C. oddest D. heaviest
4.A. in B. before C. with D. after
5.A. devote B. urge C. comfort D. prepare
6.A. feeling B. determination C. tie D. faith
7.A. mercy B. enthusiasm C. support D. energy
8.A. diverse B. permanent C. adequate D. crucial
9.A. instruction B. suggestion C. conclusion D. decision
10.A. pointed out B. cried out C. reached out D. went out
11.A. amazing B. thrilling C. discouraging D. disappointing
12.A. memories B. miracles C. missions D. motivations
13.A. terminally B. initially C. eventually D. lately
14.A. look forward B. look up C. look down D. look back
15.A. thankful B. tearful C. soulful D. cloudy
16.A. care B. bond C. appreciation D. mind
17.A. stuck B. inspired C. influenced D. struck
18.A. truly B. frankly C. generally D. gradually
19.A. moved B. melted C. matched D. mended
20.A. flashing B. flaming C. flowing D. floating
