As an English saying goes, “Laughter is the best medicine.” Until recently, few people took the saying seriously. Now however, doctors have begun to look into laughter and the effects it has on the human body. They have found that laughter really can improve people’s health.
Tests were carried out to study the effects of laughter on the body. People watched funny films while doctors checked their heart, blood pressure, breathing and muscles. It was found that laughter has similar effects to physical exercise. It increases blood pressure, makes the heart beat quicker and makes people breathe deeper; it also works several groups of muscles in the face, the stomach, and even the feet. If laughter exercises the body, it must be beneficial.
Other tests have shown that laughter appears to be able to reduce the effect of pain on the body. In one experiment doctors produced pain in groups of students who listened to different radio programs. The group that tolerated (忍耐) the pain for the longest time was the group which listened to a funny program. The reason why laughter can reduce pain seems to be that it helps to produce a kind of chemical in the brain which diminishes both stress and pain.
As a result of these discoveries, some doctors in the United States now hold laughter clinics, in which they help to improve their patients’ condition by encouraging them to laugh. They have found that even if their patients do not really feel like laughing, making them smile is enough to produce beneficial effects similar to those caused by laughter.Which of the following statements is NOT true according to the passage?
| A．Laughter can make people breathe deeper |
| B．Laughter can make you become old quickly. |
| C．Laughter helps to reduce pain. |
| D．Laughter, just like physical exercise, is good for our body. |
The underlined word “diminishes” in the third paragraph means “_________”.
| A．delays | B．prevents | C．increases | D．reduces |
Why do doctors hold laughter clinics?
| A．Because they want to earn more money. |
| B．Because they think they will help the patients recover from illnesses. |
| C．Because they want to improve their patients’ health. |
| D．Because they want their patients to laugh more. |
According to the author, we should __________ in our life.
| A．laugh as much as possible | B．watch more funny films |
| C．smile all the time | D．spend time in the laughter clinics |
What would be the best title for this passage?
| A．Both laughter and physical exercise are good for health. |
| B．Laughter clinics can help patients improve their condition. |
| C．Laughter can reduce the effect of pain. |
| D．Laughter is the best medicine. |
Living in a modern society has its advantages and disadvantages. One disadvantage is that you often have to live closer to other people than you would like to. Sometimes, your neighbors make noise that you are not comfortable with.
The best way to solve this problem is to talk with your neighbor first. You should be very polite and ask your neighbor if he knows how thin the walls of your homes are. This way doesn’t criticize(批评)his behavior; it simply points out that he may not realize how far his sound travels. Tell him that you know that sometimes you make noise as well, but that you do your best to keep it down. Often this will solve the problem right away, but sometimes the neighbor may become angry.
If your neighbor becomes angry with you, there are some more steps you can take. You might write a letter to the neighborhood committee. Make sure you write down the source of the noise and the time in the letter. They will review the situation and decide whether your neighbor is out of line. Some noise is considered to be reasonable, even if it bothers you. So you may prepare a good pair of earplugs(耳塞).
Even if your neighbor makes too much noise, you don’t have to live your life in discomfort. It’s always a good idea to be friendly with your neighbors. You may clean the rubbish in front of his door. He’s sure to appreciate behavior like this and be more open to your suggestions about noise level. What is the first step to deal with the noisy neighbor?
| A．To buy a good pair of earplugs. |
| B．To offer suggestions to the neighbor. |
| C．To ask the neighborhood committee for help. |
| D．To tell the neighbor how bad his behavior is. |
The underlined word “reasonable” in the third paragraph probably means“ ”.
| A．terrible | B．loud | C．proper | D．unpleasant |
What should be written in the letter to the neighborhood committee?
| A．How to punish your noisy neighbor. |
| B．Where and when the noise appears. |
| C．How to make the noise less in the neighborhood. |
| D．What problems the noise causes to your life. |
What does the last paragraph mainly talk about?
| A．You should control your noise as well. |
| B．You can live comfortably even if there is noise. |
| C．Your neighbor may be friendlier than you think. |
| D．You should build good relationship with your neighbor. |
The author wrote this passage to tell us .
| A．why we should get on well with neighbors |
| B．how to relax ourselves in a modern society |
| C．what we should do with our noisy neighbor |
| D．how to become known among neighbors |
At first sight the planet Mars(火星)does not appear very welcoming to any kind of life. It has very little oxygen and water, the temperature at night is below 50 degrees and winds of 100 miles(161 kilometers)per hour cause severe dust storms. However, the surface of the planet seems to show that water flowed across it at some time in the past, and it is believed that there would be enough ice at the poles to cover the planet with water if it melted. Although there is no life on the Mars now, some scientists think there may have been some form of life a long time ago. At that time, the planet had active volcanoes(火山); the atmosphere was thicker and warmer; and there was water. In fact, in some ways the Mars may have been similar to the Earth, where life exists. 
Some people believe that the Mars could support life in the future if the right conditions were produced. The first step would be to warm the planet using certain gases which trap the Sun’s heat in the planet’s atmosphere. With warmth, water and carbon dioxide, simple plants could begin to grow. These plants could slowly make the Mars fit to live on. It is judged that the whole process might take between
100, 000 and 200, 000 years. In the meantime, people could begin to live on the planet in a special closed environment. They would provide a lot of useful information about conditions on the Mars and the problems connected with living there. According to the passage, the planet Mars has no on it.
| A．winds | B．dust |
| C．mountains | D．animals |
It is believed that on the Mars now .
| A．there is a large amount of ice at the poles |
| B．there is a thicker and warmer atmosphere |
| C．there are some kinds of simple plants |
| D．there are many active volcanoes |
What is the topic of Paragraph 2?
| A．Certain gases should be used to warm the Mars. |
| B．Plants should be grown to make the Mars fit to live on. |
| C．The Mars could support life on right conditions in the future. |
| D．People could live on the Mars in a special closed environment. |
The most suitable title for the passage is .
| A．No Life on the Mars |
| B．Study of the Mars |
| C．The Possibility of Life on the Mars |
| D．Future Conditions on the Mars |
Comera is the only place in the world which has a whistle(口哨)language. We do not know how and why it began because we do not know the complete history of the island. But we can certainly imagine the reasons for the beginning of the whistle language. There are many deep valleys on the island. A person on one side of valley cannot easily shout to a person on the other side. But he can whistle and be heard from four miles away, and the record is seven miles. The people who live on the island usually have good teeth, and this helps them to whistle well. They must also have good ears so that they can hear other whistlers.
We can understand why the whistle language continues. It is very useful on the island, and quite easy to learn. When somebody is hurt or ill, the whistle language takes the place of the telephone. If the sick person is a long way from the town, boys and men pass the news from one to another. A boy guarding cattle on a hillside whistles to a man fishing from his boat. The last one is able to describe the trouble fully and exactly to the doctor in town. People help each other in the same way when a car breaks or a cow is lost.
The whistle language is hundreds of years old, and probably it will continue to live for hundreds of years more. Radio and TV often kill the special ways of speaking in the different parts of a country. But on Comera island you are nobody if you cannot whistle. Perhaps soon after TV arrives on the island, the people there will be whistling the news and other facts and opinions. If a person on Comera island is ill, .
| A．others will phone the doctor in town |
| B．the whistle language will pass the news to the doctor |
| C．his family will take him to the doctor |
| D．people will take him to the hospital |
From the passage we know radio and TV at that time.
| A．killed the special ways of speaking |
| B．whistled all the news and opinions |
| C．helped Comera people to communicate |
| D．did not appear on Comera island yet |
Comera island is special in that .
| A．it attracts visitors every year |
| B．no visitors have ever been there |
| C．people there have special ears to hear whistles |
| D．people there use the whistle language to communicate with each other |
Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?
| A．It is not easy for a person to live on Comera island if he cannot whistle. |
| B．The whistle language can only be found on Comera island. |
| C．The whistle language has been used for hundreds of years on the island, but will not be used any longer. |
| D．The record shows that one best whistler can be heard by others seven miles away. |
Many people think that the most popular way of communicating with other people is through the mouth. But what they don’t know is that actual communication using the mouth accounts for(占……比例)only around 10%(or even less)of all the means to communicate a message. 
Moreover, you can never determine the truthfulness or honesty of people by what they say alone. In fact, words expressed through the mouth often do not reflect what people really think or feel. The more reliable way you can determine their true inner feelings and thoughts is by reading their body language. Everybody communicates using these gestures and if you understand the gestures and their meanings you will be able to read people and know what they are really communicating to you. One researcher even went as far as to say that we speak to hide what’s on our minds. But gestures cannot lie.
Have you ever wondered what it would be like if you can “see through” the emotions of other people? Let’s say you ask a person whether he can do an important task. He says “OK”. But deep inside, you are questioning yourself, “Is he really willing to do this job? ” or “Does he have the confidence in finishing this task? ”You can’t question him directly because that would be like belittling him. And even if you ask him those questions, his replies will not tell you what he really feels or thinks. So the most useful way is to observe his body language. Expressions like smiling, frowning(皱眉), pouting(撅嘴), facial reddening, sweating, toe curling and sideways glances are visible hints that can help you make a right judgment. According to the passage, we know .
| A．words through the mouth are the most common way in communication |
| B．body language is the quickest way to help people understand each other |
| C．expressions are the most powerful tool to judge whether a man is confident or not |
| D．you may know what a person really thinks with the help of reading his body language |
What does the underlined sentence mean in the second paragraph?
| A．We can express ourselves well by body language. |
| B．We use words to prevent others knowing our true thoughts. |
| C．Spoken words can fully reflect our true self. |
| D．We use body language to help express ourselves. |
The underlined word in the third paragraph can be replaced with .
| A．looking down upon | B．speaking highly of |
| C．laughing at | D．believing in |
The oldest stone buildings in the world are the pyramids(金字塔). They have stood for nearly 5, 000 years, and it seems likely that they will continue to stand for thousands of years yet. There are over eighty of them scattered(散布)along the banks of the Nile, some of which are different in shape from the true pyramids. The most famous of these are the “Step” pyramid and the “Bent” pyramid. 
Some of the pyramids still look as much alike as they must have been when they were built thousands of years ago. Most of the damage suffered by the others has been at the hands of men who were looking for treasure or, more often, for stones to use in modern buildings. The dry climate of Egypt has helped to keep the pyramids in good condition, and their very shape has made them less likely to fall into ruin. These are good reasons why they can still be seen today, but perhaps the most important is that they were planned to last forever.
The “Step” pyramid had to be on the west side of the Nile, the side on which the sun sets. This was for spiritual reasons. It also had to stand well above the level of the river to protect it against the regular floods. It could not be too far from the Nile, however, as the stones to build it needed to be carried in boats down the river to the nearest point. Water transport was, of course, much easier than land transport. The builders also had to find a rock base, which was not likely to crack(破裂)under the great weight of the pyramid. Finally, it had to be near the capital, or better still near the king’s palace so that he could visit it easily to personally check the progress being made on the final resting place for his body. According to the passage, the “Step” pyramid .
| A．is unlikely to fall into ruin in the near future |
| B．was built on the sand along the Nile |
| C．is one that was built later than the true pyramids |
| D．is the most famous of the true pyramids |
The most important reason why some pyramids remain in good condition is that .
| A．people have taken good care of them |
| B．it doesn’t rain often in Egypt |
| C．they were well designed |
| D．the government has protected them from damage |
Most of the damage to the pyramids has been caused by .
| A．the regular floods |
| B．the dry climate of Egypt |
| C．people searching for gold |
| D．people in search of building materials |
The Egyptians built the pyramids along the banks of the Nile because .
| A．they believed in their god |
| B．it was difficult to find a large rock base far from the Nile |
| C．the river helped a lot in the transport of building materials |
| D．it was not easy to choose a suitable place for the pyramids |
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