All of us, at some point, experience nights where we have difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep. The National Institute of Health estimates that one in three adults has bouts of infrequent sleeplessness or insomnia, while one in 10 sufferes from chronic insomnia. Being unable to get a good night's sleep can cause disruptions in our daytoday life. But persistent sleeplessness can lead to physical and emotional health problems.
The body needs sleep to rejuvenate itself and rebuild the cells necessary to keep the immune system strong and the brain functioning properly. Everyone's body requires a different amount of sleep to accomplish these goals. The average amount of sleep needed by an adult is around seven or eight hours a night. However, some people can function quite well with less than that, while others need more to be at peak performance.
Sleeplessness can be caused by many different things. Most people experience sleeplessness for a short period of time due to an outside stimulus such as stress, improper diet, a poor sleeping environment or an acute medical concern such as the flu. Once the stimulus passes, the ability to sleep will usually return. Chronic sleeplessness may be caused by ongoing health concerns such as the physical pain of arthritis or the emotional pain of anxiety and depression.
Prolonged sleeplessness can have a negative effect on the way the body performs daily tasks. Those that suffer from sleepless nights may find themselves feeling drowsy or fatigued during the day. The ability to concentrate or focus on a task diminishes and you are less mentally alert. Because the body needs sleep to support a healthy immune system, those that are sleepdeprived may be more susceptible to both acute and chronic illnesses such as high blood pressure and diabetes.
Sleeplessness not only takes a toll on your physical self but also your emotional wellbeing. Being unable to sleep well for a few nights may only produce minor irritability. However, if sleeplessness becomes chronic, the price could be much higher in the form of anxiety, depression and possibly substance abuse. Those with chronic sleeplessness may turn to controlled substances such as sleeping pills and alcohol to aid them in their quest for a good night's sleep.
There are numerous home remedies for mild sleeplessness. Prepare your body for sleep by avoiding caffeinated drinks such as tea or coffee before bed. Don't exercise strenuously before bedtime; instead do something relaxing such as meditate or take a warm bath. Go to bed only when you feel sleepy and not because of a selfappointed bedtime.Finally, create a favorable sleeping environment by removing stimulants from your bedroom such as extra lighting or a television. If you still cannot find relief, it may be time to visit your physician for help. A sleep study will be done that can help to determine the cause of the sleeplessness and possible solutions.
It’s really true what people say about English politeness: it’s everywhere. When squeezing past someone in
a narrow aisle, people s
ay “sorry”. When getting off a bus, English passengers say “thank you” rather than the driver. In Germany, people would never dream of doing these things. After all, squeezing past others sometimes can’t be avoided, and the bus driver is merely doing his job. I used to think the same way, without questioning it, until I started travelling to the British Isles and came to appreciate some more polite ways of communicating with people.
People thank each other everywhere in England, all the time. When people buy something in a shop, customer and retail assistant in most cases thank each other twice or more. In G
ermany, it would be exceptional to hear more than one thank you in such a conversation. British students thank their lecturers when leaving the room. English employers thank their employees for doing their jobs, as opposed to Germans, who would normally think that paying their workers money is already enough.
Another thing I observed during my stay was that English people rarely criticize others. Even when I was working and mistakes were pointed out to me, my employers stressed several times but none of their explanations were intended as criticism. It has been my impression that by avoiding criticism, English people are making an effort to make others feel comfortable. This also is shown in other ways. British men still open doors for women, and British men are more likely to treat women to a meal than German men. However, I do need to point out here that this applies to English men a bit more than it would to Scottish men! Yes, the latter are a bit tightfisted.What is the author’s attitude towards English politeness?
| A．He thinks it is artificial | B．He gives no personal opinion |
C．He appreciates it |
D．He thinks it goes too far. |
What can we learn about customers and retail assistants in Germany?
| A．A customer never says thank you to a retail assistant. |
| B．It’s always a retail assistant who says thank you. |
| C．They may say thank you only once. |
| D．they always say thank you to each other. |
We can learn from the last paragraph that Scottish men ___________.
| A．are more likely to be involved in a fighting. |
| B．are more polite than English men. |
| C．treat women in a polite way. |
| D．are not so willing to spend money for women. |
The author develops the text through the method of ____________.
| A．making comparisons | B．telling stories |
| C．giving comments | D．giving reasons |
In the rush to get to school, you drop a piece of toast on the floor. Do you throw it away or decide it’s still OK to eat? If you’re like most people, you eat it. Maybe you follow the “5-second rule”, which claims foods are safe to eat if you pick them up within 5 seconds after dropping them.
But you might want to think again. Scientists now say that 5 seconds is all it takes for foods to become polluted with enough bacteria（细菌）to make you sick.
Bacteria can cause many kinds of illnesses. Some kinds of bacteria can grow on food. If you eat foods on which these bacteria are growing, you can become sick.
One of these food-borne bacteria is Salmonella. It makes 1.4 million people sick every year. Salmonella is often found in raw eggs and chicken. Cooking kills these bacteria, which is why it is so important to cook eggs, chicken, and other foods thoroughly.
But how long does it take these bacteria to pollute food? A team of scientists in South Carolina did an experiment. First, they placed an amount of Salmonella on three surfaces; wood, tile (瓦片), and carpet. They placed a piece of bread and a piece of bologna（一种大红肠）on each surface for 5, 30, or 60 seconds. After just 5 seconds, both the bread and the bologna picked up enough bacteria to make you sick.
So, forget the 5-second rule. If your toast drops on the floor, throw it away and get another piece of clean toast. And this time, be careful not to drop it!In which part of a newspaper can you most probably find this passage?
| A．Culture | B．Health | C．Advertisement | D．Technology |
After dropping a piece of toast, a person who follows the “5-second rule” will .
| A．throw away dirty toast immediately and go away |
| B．pick up the toast as quickly as possible and eat it |
| C．eat the toast within 5 seconds and feel pleased |
D．get another piece of clean toast quickly and eat it |
The scientists in South Carolina did the experiment to __________ .
| A．see how quickly bacteria can pollute food |
| B．show that the 5-second rule is correct |
| C．see how harmful bacteria are to people’s health |
| D．show that bacteria grow at different speeds on different foods |
“Life is speeding up. Everyone is getting unwell.”
This may sound like something someone would say today. But in fact, an unknown citizen who lived in Rome in AD 52 wrote it.
We all love new inventions. They are exciting, amazing and can even change our lives.
But have all these developments really improve the quality of our lives?
Picture this: You’re rushing to finish your homework on the computer. Your mobile phone rings, a QQ message from your friend appears on the screen, the noise from the television is getting louder and louder. Suddenly the computer goes blank and you lose all your work. Now you have to stay up all night to get it done. How calm and happy do you feel?
Inventions have speeded up our lives so much that they often leave us feeling stressed and tired. Why do you think people who live far away from noisy cities, who have no telephones, no cars, not even any electricity often seem to be happier? Perhaps because they lead a simpler life.
One family in the UK went “back in time” to see what life was like without all the inventions we have today. The grandparents, with their daughter, and grandsons Benjamin, 10, and Tomas, 7, spent nine weeks in a 1940s house. They had no washing machine, microwave, computer or mobile phones.
The grandmother, Lyn, said, “It was hard physically, but not mentally.” She believed life was less materialistic. “The more things you have, the more difficult life becomes,” She said. The boys said they found less to fight over, such as their computer. Benjamin also noticed that his grandmother had changed from being a “trendy（时髦的）, beer-drinking granny, to one who cooked things.”
Here are some simple ways to beat the stress often caused by our inventions!
Don’t be available all the time. Turn off your mobile phone at certain times of the day. Don’t check your e-mail every day.
Don’t reply to somebody as soon as they leave a text message just because you can. It may be fun at first, but it soon gets annoying.
Don’t worry too much about life—laugh more.The passage is mainly about __ .
| A．problem with technology |
| B．improvements of our life with technology |
| C．the important roles technology plays in our everyday life |
| D．major changes which will be likely to happen to technology |
The writer quoted（引用）what a citizen in ancient Rome said at the beginning of the story in order to __ .
| A．share a truth about life |
| B．tell us what life was like long time ago |
| C．make us wonder what causes such a thing to happen |
| D．point out that you experience some big problems and they may be the same |
Choosing a nice mountain bike for you is easier than learning how to ride it. Keep these tips in mind：
Decide how you are going to use your new mountain bike.
Are you a new rider who simply wants to travel outdoors on the weekend，weather permitting？Do you intend to test yourself on the rough roads，every day，rain or shine？Or are you going to use your new mountain bike to ride to and from school or work？Be honest about your intentions，and you’re more than half way toward choosing the right mountain bike for you.
Visit your local bike shops.
Any good bike shop will stock a wide range of quality mountain bikes in all price points and sizes. Your local bike shops will carry more than one brand of bicycle. Not only will they sell you a mountain bike that suits your needs，but they will service what they sell. Visit at least a few shops. You’ll get one that satisfies you right away.
Don’t be bashful.
Tell your salesperson how you intend to use your new mountain bike，and how much you are willing to spend. Your salesperson will show you a selection of models and brands accordingly. He or she will also help you determine the right size for you. You may ask more without any sense of shyness.
Take a test ride.
All good bike shops let customers take test rides. There’s a good reason for this beyond “trybeforeyoubuy” salesmanship. Since you already know your price range and find the right size，you now have to find out which brand you ride best. They want you to be happy with your purchase. After only a few test rides from more than one bike shop，the right mountain bike will choose you.
What would be the best title for the text?
| A．How to Choose a Mountain Bike |
| B．How to Ride a Mountain Bike |
| C．Where to Ride Your Local Bike |
| D．Why to Take a Test Ride |
The main purpose of visiting bike shops is________.
| A．to share happiness with the salesperson |
| B．to seek a wide range of quality |
| C．to get a mountain bike that satisfies you |
| D．to service your new mountain bike |
The underlined word “bashful” means________.
| A．cold | B．pitiful | C．shy | D．helpful |
Which of the following is probably the author’s attitude towards “trybeforeyoubuy” salesmanship?
| A．Honorable. | B．Favorable. | C．Negative. | D．Suspicious(怀疑的). |
Compared to people with bad attitudes，people who are cheerful and relaxed are less likely to suffer from colds，according to a new study.“It’s possible that being upbeat helps the body fight illnesses，” says Sheldon Cohen，the study’s lead researcher from Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) in Pittsburgh.
In a previous（先前的） study，Cohen and his colleagues put coldcausing viruses into the noses of 334 healthy adults. People who tended to be cheerful and lively were least likely to develop sniffles，coughs，and other 
cold symptoms. People who showed positive feelings were also less likely to mention symptoms to their doctors，even when medical tests detected those symptoms.
Those findings were interesting，but they didn’t prove that a person’s attitude affects whether he or she gets sick. Instead，it was still possible that a person’s underlying personality is what matters. Evidence suggests，for instance，that certain people are naturally more likely to be outgoing and optimistic，with high selfesteem and a sense of control over life. This would mean that who we are，not how we feel，ultimately decides our chances of catching colds.
To figure out which mattered more (personality or emotions)，the CMU team interviewed 193 healthy adults. The researchers talked to each person over the phone every evening for 2 weeks. At the end of the interviewing period，people got nose drops that contained either cold or flu viruses. Then，each person stayed in an isolated room for 5 or 6 days. The results showed that everyone in the study was equally likely to get infected. Their symptoms，however，differed depending on the types of emotions that they had reported over the previous 2 weeks. Among those who reported good moods and had been infected with the flu virus，for example,2
8 percent developed coughs and stuffy noses. On the other hand，those symptoms struck 41 percent of people who had been less upbeat.
What would be the best title for the passage?
| A．Smiles Turn away Colds |
| B．An Interesting Way to Beat Colds |
| C．Be Outgoing and Optimistic to Fight Colds |
| D．What Matters More，Personality or Emotions? |
In the previous study，people who showed positive feelings______.
| A．didn’t catch colds as often |
| B．developed cold symptoms more slowly |
| C．were less likely to have cold symptoms detected |
| D．were less likely to feel cold symptoms |
What mainly decides our chances of catching colds according to the new study?
| A．Personality. | B．Selfesteem（自尊）. | C．Emotions. | D．Attitudes. |
The underlined word “symptoms” probably means________.
| A．something that causes cold |
| B．something that results in cold |
| C．signs that something exists，especially something bad |
| D．changes in your body or mind that show that you are not healthy |
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