Even a small reduction in salt in the diet can be a big help to the heart. A new study used a computer model to predict how just t
hree grams less a day would af
fect heart disease in the United States.
The result: thirteen percent fewer heart attacks. Eight percent fewer strokes. Four percent fewer deaths. Eleven percent fewer new cases of heart disease. And two hundred forty billion dollars in health care savings.
Researchers found it could prevent one hundred thousand heart attacks and ninety-two thousand deaths every year.
The study is in the New England Journal of Medicine. Kirsten, at the University of California, was the lead author. She says people would not even notice a difference in taste with three grams, or one-half teaspoon, less salt per day. The team also included researchers at Stanford and Columbia University.
Each gram of salt contains four hundred milligrams of sodium, which is how foods may list their salt content.
The government says the average American man eats ten grams of salt a day. The American Heart Association advises no more than three grams for healthy people. It says salt in the American diet has increased fifty percent since the nineteen seventies, while blood pressures have also risen. Less salt can mean a lower blood pressure.
New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg is leading an effort called the National Salt Reduction Initiative. The idea is to put pressure on food companies and restaurants.
Mayor Bloomberg has already succeeded in other areas, like requiring fast food places in the city to list calorie information. Now a study by the Seattle Children's Research Institute shows how that idea can influence what parents order for their children.
Ninety-nine parents of three to six year olds took part. Half had McDonald's menus clearly showing how many calories were in each food. The other half got menus without the calorie information. How many heart attacks will occur in the US every year？
| A．nearly 800,000. | B．24,000. |
| C．100,000. | D．92,000. |
We can learn from the passage that .
| A．Americans ate no more than 5 grams of salt per day in the 1970s |
| B．the American Heart Association suggest less than 3 grams of salt every day |
| C．a reduction in salt in the diet helps lower blood pressure |
| D．all the heart diseases result from eating more salt |
The National Salt Reduction Initiative aims to .
| A．advise Americans to eat less salt |
| B．put pressure on food companies and restaurants |
| C．require fast food places to list calorie information |
| D．attract the public attention to the problem |
All the following are related to the salt in diet except .
| A．strokes | B．heart attacks |
| C．blood pressures | D．stomach diseases |
The best title of the passage of the passage is .
| A．Less salt can mean more life |
| B．Prevent heart attacks and deaths |
| C．The National Salt Reduction Initiative |
| D．Americans should eat less salt |
The word “conservation” has a thrifty meaning. To conserve is to save 
and protect, to leave what we ourselves enjoy in such a good condition that others may also share the enjoyment. Our forefathers had no idea that human population would increase faster than the supplies of raw materials: most of them, even until very recently, had the foolish idea that the treasures were “limitless” and could “last forever”. Most of the citizens of earlier generations knew little or nothing about the complicated and delicate system that runs all through nature, and which means that, as in a living body, an unhealthy condition of one part will sooner or later be harmful to all the others.
Fifty years ago, nature study was not part of the school work; scientific forestry was a new idea; wood was still cheap because it could be brought in any quantity from distant woodlands; soil destruction and river floods were not national problems; nobody had yet studied long-term climatic cycles in relation to proper land use; even the word “conservation” had nothing of the meaning that it has for us today.
For the sake of ourselves and those who will come after us, we must now set about correcting the mistakes of our forefathers. Conservation should be made part of everybody’s daily life. To know about the water table in ground is just as important to us as a knowledge of the basic math formulas. We need to know why all watersheds (上游集水区) need the protection of plant life and why the running current of streams and rivers must be made to give their full benefit to the soil before they finally escape to the sea. We need to be taught the duty of planting trees as well as of cutting them. We need to know the importance of big, grown trees, because living space for most of man’s fellow creatures on this planet is figured not only in square measure of surface but also in cubic (立方体的) volume above the earth. In a word, it should be our goal to restore as much of the original beauty of nature as we can.The author’s attitude towards the use of natural resources is _________.
| A．positive | B．uninterested | C．optimistic | D．critical |
According to the author, the greatest mistake of our forefathers was that _________.
| A．they had no idea about scientific forestry |
| B．they had little or no sense of environmental protection |
| C．they were not aware of the importance of nature study |
| D．they had no idea of how to make good use of raw materials |
To avoid repeating the mistakes of our forefathers, the author suggests that ______
| A．we plant more trees |
| B．natural sciences be taught to everybody |
| C．environmental education be directed toward everyone |
| D．we return to nature |
How can you understand the underlined sentence in the last paragraph?
| A．Our living space on the earth is getting smaller and smaller. |
| B．Our living space should be measured in cubic volume. |
| C．We need to take some measures to protect space. |
| D．We must preserve good living conditions for both birds and animals. |
Prince Charles yesterday promised to reduce the royal impact on the environment through sweeping changes to his personal lifestyle and official schedule. The prince will replace carbon-heavy private jets and helicopters with scheduled flights and train services.
The move came as Prince Charles urged business leaders to publish the environmental pact of their activities.
He said, “Few accountants and business decision-makers ask, ‘How much of our critical natural resource is left? How many miles of polar ice cap has our business helped melt this year? By how many inches have we raised sea levels? How many species have we put at risk? How many homes will be flooded, how many people will die of thirst or starvation because of our activities? ’ These are not comfortable questions, but, by God, they need to be asked. ”
He added, “At the moment these costs do not appear in anyone’s books… Yet they are real, they are incurred now and in a relatively short time, the damage being caused may be beyond remedy. ” He said the world was “running up the biggest global credit card debt in history, but with little or no thought for how the bill will ever be paid”.
Flanked by the prime minister and bus
iness and community leaders at St James’ Palace, the prince said his new “accounting for sustainability” project would give consumers the power to choose products that caused less damage to the planet.
Duchy Originals, the prince’s food company, is taking steps to work out how much carbon dioxide and other green-house gases are emitted in growing, processing and distributing its products. The changes to the prince’s travel arrangements announced yesterday are part of a wider review of the carbon footprint associated with activities at all three of his residences. Clarence House in London, Highgrove and Birkhall on the Balmorals estate(庄园), as well as the activities of his 21 personal and 105 full-time staff. Measures include a review of electricity use, commuter and other staff travel and are intended to identify further reductions in ca
rbon dioxide emissions. The review will report in June , when Clarence House will announce annual targets to reduce carbon emission. How does Prince Charles feel about business leaders in terms of environmental protection?
| A．Dissatisfied. | B．Disappointed. |
| C．Doubtful. | D．Impatient. |
In response to Prince Charles’ calls, Duchy Originals will ______.
| A．make as much green food as possible |
| B．cut down its cost |
| C．figure out its greenhouse gas emission |
| D．continue its greenhouse gas emission |
The underlined phrase in paragraph 4 probably refers to ______.
| A．the great amount of waste produced by industry |
| B．the great damage caused to the environment |
| C．the great amount of debts of the royal family |
| D．the high cost of industry in their producing process |
What would be the best title for the passage?
| A．Prince Charles promised Greener Royal Lifestyle |
| B．Better Late than Never |
| C．Prince Charles and His Concern for Environment |
| D．The Royal Family Has a Role to Play in Environment Protection |
In Colombia , there are some unwritten rules that people are used to , These rules are not officially established , but people do respect them . For example , on a bus , a person keeps a distance from another person , and people don’t like to touch each other . Many people come to work late because they prefer to wait for another bus if the first one is too crowded . They don’t want to have to stand too close to another person , or maybe they are afraid of starting a conversation .
A friend of mine in Colombia once said his mom got angry because he came home late , so he asked her , “ Mom , what do you think of most people arriving at their jobs so late ? ” That gave her the answer to her question since everyone knows no one wants to get on a bus that is too crowded . His mother realized at that moment that customs have a big influence on a person’s life .
Sometimes , people don’t like to make any kind of conversation or make eye contact with others . For example , when they are in line at a bank , they prefer to look up or down rather than look at other people .
Moreover , people usually look down when they are in an elevator . Not only on a bus , in line at a bank , and in an elevator do people usually avoid talking to other people , but also in the streets when they are walking , they prefer to look down and to avoid contact with others .Why do many people get to work late in Colombia ?
| A．They always think the next bus will be better . |
| B．They don’t want to get on crowded buses . |
| C．It’s an official rule in Colombia . |
| D．They get into conversations and miss their buses . |
From the text we learn that __________ .
| A．customs influence people’s lives |
| B．a mother always understands her son |
| C．people respect each other in Colombia |
| D．people like to talk in elevators in Colombia |
When people in Colombia are in line at banks , they __________ .
| A．make eye contact | B．look at other people |
| C．make conversation | D．look up or down |
What would be the best title for the text ?
| A．What People Do in Different Situations | B．Avoid Getting on a Crowded Bus |
| C．Special Customs in Colombia | D．Obeying Unwritten Rules |
On Christmas morning, I went to the Cockhedge Mall. People there were all busy buying their last minute requirements. I neede
d to buy a birthday card for my son-in-law whose birthday is the 29th of December. Picking up a few more things as well as my cared I went to join the line for the express checkout which was for people who only had a few items in a basket and not a trolley load. This line was next to the Customer Service desk.
Seemingly waiting quite a long time, I was jogged out of my thoughts by a voice behind me making comments on the things I bought.
It was so funny when I realized that she was describing the contents of my basket. The owner of the voice was a very pretty young lady. I said to her that I was going to buy a box of Christmas cookies but the only ones left were not to my liking. The lady told me that just opposite Cockhedge in Superdrug they had lots of cookies. I said, “I’m not going to bother now. I had enough of shops and I’m going home.”
The assistant from the Customer Service came across at this time saying “If there is anyone in the line with a few items in their basket, none of which needed to be weighed, I will check out their groceries at the desk.” Because I had the sprouts which needed to be weighted, the young lady accepted the offer and walked away waving goodbye.
Eventually my turn came at the checkout. I was walking away when I met my new friend once again who handed me a beautiful box of Christmas cookies. With a big hug she said “Hope you have a lovely Christmas.” She had been into Superdrug to buy me the cookies while I was still queuing in Cockhedge.
What a generosity to a
stranger! I was so surprised you could have knocked me down with a feather. My Good Samaritan would never know what a joyful Christmas day I had with my family. Telling them this story, as we ate around the table, kept everyone spellbound.The underlined word “spellbound” in the last paragraph probably means .
| A．interested | B．disappointed | C．astonished | D．frightened |
Which of the following could be the best title of the story?
| A．A Piece of Lucky Feather | B．A Surprise Christmas Gift |
| C．The Boring Shopping Experience | D．The Unforgettable Big Hug |
How does the writer feel about the pretty young lady?
| A．Worried | B．Satisfied | C．Grateful | D．Proud |
What can we learn from the story?
| A．Nobody is sure what will happen the next moment. |
| B．A simple action can bring other people happiness. |
| C．Being patient will decrease the waiting time. |
| D．Life without hope and faith is a full thing. |
Scientists warn today that the Atlantic bluefin tuna（金枪鱼）faces disappearance unless certain action is taken. They used electronic ways to track the movement of the powerful fish from the Gulf of Mexico to the Mediterranean, and report today in the journal Nature that meals of sushi and sandwiches with tuna worldwide are more dangerous than anyone has imagined.
The bluefin tuna can live for 30 years, grow to three metres in length and weigh as much as 700kg. A good one can fetch as much as £ 52,000 in the Tokyo fish markets. “In my lifetime, we’ve brought this big fish to the doorstep of death in the western Atlantic Ocean,” said Barbara Block of Stanford University in California. “The electronic way of tracks provides the best scientific information we’ve ever had to manage these tuna and we must, as an international community, start to act actively to make sure of the future of this fish. ”
Scientists have repeatedly said that the harvest of the seas cannot be as good as before. There are fewer and fewer fish in around Newfoundland, North Sea and Iceland, so fishermen have pushed further offshore in search of deep ocean fish. Tuna—in the Mediterranean and Japan—have been under increasing pressure for years. The International Commission on the Conservation of Atlantic Tuna has tried to manage the fish since 1969．There are two populations: a western one that has dropped by 80% in the past 30 years, and a larger, eastern population. Although catches are controlled by 3,000 tons a year in the western fishery, and 32,000 in the east, no one knew whether the limits worked.
So Professor Block and her team placed tracks on hundreds of the fish and tracked them to depths of more than 900 metres and on journeys of thousands of miles, measuring the movement, body and water temperatures. “There are two ways to save the Atlantic bluefin tuna—protect them in their production grounds and in their feeding grounds,” Prof. Block said. “This will need immediate action in both the central Atlantic, to reduce the loss of the big fish while hunting, and in the Gulf of Mexico and Mediterranean, where tuna produce as separate populations. ”
The bluefin tuna in this passage mainly refers to the one _______.
| A．in the Atlantic | B．in the Pacific |
| C．in the Gulf of Mexico | D．in the Mediterranean |
Which of the following is NOT true according to this passage?
| A．The bluefin tuna is a kind of large and heavy fish. |
| B．The number of the bluefin tuna in the sea is getting smaller and smaller. |
| C．Scientists are worried about the future of the tuna. |
| D．Scientists think that the harvest of the seas will remain good. |
According to Professor Block, tuna can be saved by ______.
| A．finding a new way to protect them |
| B．controlling the catches of them |
| C．reducing the population to eat them |
| D．protecting them in their production and feeding grounds |
The purpose of the passage is to ______.
| A．tell people a new way has been found to save the bluefin tuna |
| B．call for action to save the bluefin tuna |
| C．warn people not to eat tuna sandwiches anymore |
| D．help scientists to find a new way to save the bluefin tuna |
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