Researchers are placing robotic dogs（机器狗）in the homes of lonely old people to determine whether they can improve the quality of life for humans. Alan Beck, an expert in human-animal relationship, and Nancy Edwards, a professor of nursing, are leading the animal-assisted study concerning the influence of robotic dogs on old people’s depression, physical activity, and life satisfaction. “No one will argue that an older person is better off being more active, challenged, or stimulated（应急的） ,”Edwards points out. “The problem is how we promote that, especially for those without friends or help. A robotic dog could be a solution.”
In the study, the robot, called AIBO, is placed for six weeks in the houses of some old people who live alone. Before placing AIBO in the home, researchers will collect baseline data for six weeks. These old people will keep a diary to note their feelings and activity before and after AIBO. Then, the researchers will review the data to determine if it has inspired any changes in the life of its owner.
“I talk to him all the time, and he responds to my voice,” says a seventy-year-old lady, “When I’m watching TV, he’ll stay in my arms until he wants down. He has a mind of his own.”
The AIBOs respond to certain orders. The researchers say they have some advantages over live dogs, especially for old people. Often the elderly are disabled(行动不便的) and cannot care for an animal by walking it or playing with it. A robotic dog removes（免除） exercise and feeding concerns.
“At the beginning, it was believed that no one would relate to the robotic dog, because it was metal and not furry.” Beck says，“But it’s amazing how quickly we have given up that belief.”
“Hopefully, down the road, these robotic pets could become a more-valuable health helper. They will record their masters’ blood pressure, oxygen levels, or heart rhythms. AIBOs may even one day have games that can help stimulate older people’s minds.” The purpose of Beck and Edwards’ study is to .
| A．understand human-animal relationship |
| B．find the causes of old people’s loneliness |
| C．make lonely old people’s life better |
| D．promote the animal-assisted research |
In the research, the old people are asked to .
| A．note the activities of AIBOs | B．record their feelings and activity |
| C．keep AIBOs at home for 12 weeks | D．analyze the collected information |
What is the advantage of AIBO over live dogs?
| A．It is easier to keep at home. | B．It responds to all the human orders. |
| C．It can help the disabled people. | D．It can watch TV with its owner. |
It is the season for long lines and frayed (紧张的)nerves. Here are some ways to survive a holiday flight.
Lighten up
Do yourself a favor and ship your presents. Nearly every U. S. airline charges a fee to check a bag, so shipping gifts is now cheaper and more convenient than carrying them in your luggage.
Weigh your options
Not knowing what you're going to pay for your luggage is annoying. So calculate your overweight-luggage fees at home. You can find the fees out in advance by visiting new site Luggage Limits ，which provides the latest information on more than 90 airlines.
Leave amateurs in the dust
Trust us and get to the airport an extra half-hour early. The check-in and security lines are filled with inexperienced fliers, and it's a hard walking. Plus, if you decide to cut it close you may not get onto the flight at all. To reduce costs, airlines have reduced on flights and routes. The remaining flights are more likely to be oversold , especially on busy travel days. Fliers who check in early are the least likely to get bumped from oversold flights.
Take it public
The rates for renting a car at the airport have more than doubled over the past year because rental lot inventories have decreased dramatically (显著地). True, renting at the airport is convenient, but it's just not worth it anymore. Unless you really need a car，take public transportation, hop a cab，or beg a friend to pick you up at the airport instead.
Say no to bumper cars
Tell the people picking you up to avoid parking their car. They can hang out in their car for free while waiting to get a call from you when you land. Many airports, including JFK and LAX now feature this sensible choice. How does the author think of shipping gifts?
| A．Unnecessary. | B．Expensive. | C．Inconvenient. | D．Wonderful. |
Airlines have reduced flights to ______ .
| A．deal with crisis | B．reduce the time for leave |
| C．lower the cost | D．provide more job chances |
The underlined phrase "in advance" in the third paragraph could be replaced by ______ .
| A．in person | B．ahead of time |
| C．by accident | D．in addition |
What's the best title for the passage?
| A．5 Ways to Survive a Holiday Flight |
| B．Good Seasons for Flight |
| C．Cars at the Airport |
| D．How to Board a Flight |
To master a language one must be able to speak it，understand it when it is spoken, as well as to read and write it. These days more and more foreigners are coming to China and more and more Chinese are going abroad to work or study so that the spoken language is becoming more and more important.
Speaking， of course， can't go without listening. If you want to pronounce a word correctly，you must be able to hear it correctly. The sounds of the Chinese and English language are not exactly the same. If you don't listen carefully, you'll find it difficult or even impossible to understand the native speakers.
Well, what about writing? Like speaking, it's used to exchange ideas. People generally use longer sentences in their writing. The important thing is to make your ideas clear in your head and then write them down in clear language.
Chinese students read far too slowly. If you read faster，you understand better. If you read too slowly，by the time you have reached the end of a page you have forgotten what the beginning is about. When you meet with new words，don't look them up in the dictionary at once. Guess the meanings. If you try to look up every word, you'll never finish a book.
Students of a foreign language need a particular knowledge, the knowledge of the life，history and geography of the people whose language they're studying. They should study these subjects in the foreign language, not only in translation. In this way one can kill two birds with one stone ： he can learn the language and some knowledge of the foreign country at the same time.In the first paragraph the writer told us ______ .
| A．how to speak English |
| B．how to read and write |
| C．why English people couldn't understand what foreigners said |
| D．why spoken English is important |
In the fourth paragraph the writer gave us some advice on ______ .
| A．how to guess the meaning from the context |
| B．how to read fast |
| C．how to look up new words in the dictionary |
| D．how to get the general idea of a passage |
"To kill two birds with one stone" means ______ .
| A．to get some particular knowledge |
| B．to get more than what one pays |
| C．the stone is very useful |
| D．the birds are blind enough |
The rising costs of health care have become a problem for many countries in the world. To deal with this problem, it is recommended that a big part of the government's health budget be used for health education and disease prevention instead of treatment. Actually，many kinds of diseases are preventable in many ways and preventing a disease is usually much cheaper than treating it. For example，people could avoid catching a cold if they dressed warmly when the weather starts getting cold. But many people get sick because they fail to do so，and have to spend money seeing a doctor.
Daily habits like eating more healthy food would have kept millions of families from becoming bankrupt if the patients had taken measures for early prevention. For instance, keeping a balanced diet，such as not consuming too much animal fat and insuring a steady intake of vegetables and fruits，seems to be quite important.
One very effective and costless way of prevention is regular exercise , which is necessary for a healthy mind and body. Regular exercise ，such as running，walking, and playing sports is a good way to make people feel better or reduce stress.
In addition, health education plays a key role in improving people's health. By giving people more information about health, countries could help people understand the importance of disease prevention and ways to achieve it. For example, knowing one's family medical history is an effective way to help keep healthy. Information about health problems among close relatives will make them aware of what they should do to prevent certain diseases through lifestyle changes, which will work before it is too late.
However，stressing disease prevention does not mean medical treatment is unimportant. After all，prevention and treatment are just two different means toward the same effect. In conclusion, we could save money on health care and treat patients more successfully if our country spends more money on health prevention and education. What's the best title of the passage?
| A．Prevention or Education? | B．Prevention or Treatment? |
| C．Health or Illness? | D．Exercise or Illness? |
Which of the following can replace the underlined word "bankrupt"?
| A．Unable to be cured. |
| B．Unable to pay one's debts. |
| C．Stronger than ever before. |
| D．More successful than ever before. |
We learn from the passage that ______ .
| A．dressing warmly can prevent diseases |
| B．a balanced diet is cheaper than regular exercise |
| C．the more health education，the better |
| D．the government's health budget should be increased |
Which of the following shows the structure of the passage?
CP( Central Point) P( Point) Sp( Sub-point 次要点)C ( Conclusion)
The WHO says alcohol abuse is the third leading cause of death and disability in the world and the harmful use of alcohol kills 2. 5 million people a year. So action is needed to reduce the problem.
The WHO released the "Global Status Report on Alcohol and Health 2011" on February 11,2011. The report shows young people are at risk. It says 320,000 people between the age of 15 and 29 die yearly from the causes related to alcohol. That is 9% of all deaths in that age group.
Shekhar Saxena is director of the Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse at the WHO. He says alcohol is responsible for one-third of the deaths among young people in some parts of the world.
Shekhar Saxena said, "Consumption and harmful effects of alcohol are increasing in developing countries, particularly in Africa and Asia，which have fewer powerful regulations and which have fewer health services available."
The WHO report finds that 6% of all male deaths worldwide are related to alcohol. This is true in only 1% of female deaths. The report says one in five men die from the causes related to alcohol in the 'Russian Federation and neighboring countries.
There are four main causes of death related to alcohol. Injury, from car accidents or violence, is one cause. Diseases like cirrhosis (肝硬化), cancer, heart and blood vessel diseases are the others. Alcohol abuse also leads to the development of 200 other diseases.
However， the majority of people in the world are not alcohol drinkers. The report says in 2005 , almost half of men and two-thirds of women did not drink alcohol at all.
Dr. Saxena says people who are dependent on alcohol live ten years less on average than those who do not have the problem.
The WHO has a plan to reduce the harmful use of alcohol, which includes raising taxes on alcohol，reducing the number of places to sell alcohol and increasing the drinking age. Officials say other measures include effective laws that punish drunk driving and banning some alcohol advertising. Shekhar Saxena thinks increasing people suffer from drinking alcohol in developing countries because ______ .
| A．they lack medical knowledge |
| B．they lack effective regulations |
| C．social customs encourage drinking |
| D．no health care is available to drinkers |
The percentage of men dying from the causes related to alcohol
worldwide is ______ .
| A．20% | B．9% | C．7% | D．6% |
Paragraph 6 talks mainly about.
| A．the side effects of alcohol abuse |
| B．reasons for high death rate in Russia |
| C．common diseases related to alcohol abuse |
| D．the main causes of death |
The underlined part in Paragraph 8 probably refers to ______ .
| A．those who don't drink at all |
| B．those who already quit drinking |
| C．those who are not addicted to alcohol |
| D．those who are free from health problems |
With the advent (到来，出现)of fast food chains from the West such as McDonald's, Kentucky Fried Chicken and Pizza Hut, the Chinese are being introduced to a diet that markedly increases the death rate from certain diseases.
The main killers in North America，the degenerative diseases such as heart attack and stroke as well as colon cancer, will become ways of death in this country if the Chinese do not act quickly and compete with these health-destroying food chains.
Scientific studies from all over the world show that a diet high in animal foods、such as pork, beef, including sugar, white flour, white noodles and even white rice, undermines one's health. Deposits of animal fat cling to the walls of arteries, blocking the blood supply to various organs.
This causes diseases in almost every organ，but in particular it damages two of the most vital ones, the heart and the brain.
Compare these problems with the excellent health one may enjoy if one consumes good Chinese food. The cook goes out every day, procures tasty，fresh vegetables, then cooks them for just a few minutes so that their nutritional value is preserved and afterwards serves them in a most artistic and elegant fashion. Please cling to your traditional ways of eating. They are far superior to those of the West.
Certainly the fast food chains make lots of money，but who wants to fill the pockets of a foreign food chain that proceeds to ruin the health of the Chinese people?
Another reason why Western fast food restaurants make money is that the food they serve, which comes from assembly lines, will not attract bugs or spoil easily.
How the Chinese could patronize (经常光顾)these fast food places when Chinese cook such delicious food, not just in this country but over the entire world, is beyond my comprehension.
Western restaurants are clean and tastefully decorated. Moreover, these restaurants do have "good service and an inviting dining atmosphere". However, Chinese food chains could do likewise if they would organize themselves as the Western chains do.
These lessons in management and decoration are the only ones worth learning from the invasion of this country by the Western fast food chains. In other words, only imitate the style of the restaurants' form.
Do not let the desire for money destroy the wonderful tradition that China has established in producing fantastically tasty as well as healthful food. The following are fast food chains from the West EXCEPT ______ .
| A．McDonald's | B．Kentucky Fried Chicken |
| C．Pizza Hut | D．Chinese restaurants |
The underlined word" undermines" in the third paragraph may have the similar meaning with "______".
| A．improves | B．damages |
| C．affects | D．strengthens |
What will be worth learning from the Western fast food chains?
| A．The content of the food. |
| B．The menus. |
| C．The lessons in management and decoration. |
| D．Shape or form of the food. |
In the passage, the author thinks ______.
| A．Chinese should learn everything from Western fast food restaurants. |
| B．Chinese should say no to Western fast food. |
| C．Western fast food restaurants offer healthy diets. |
| D．Chinese food doesn't contain enough nutrition. |
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