Lights Out at Bedtime
There are plenty of good reasons to power up a personal desktop or laptop computer in the evening — writing e-mails，chatting on social networks or making purchases over the Internet，for instance．But various studies indicate that people who stare at a PC’s bright monitor shortly before going to bed probably sleep less soundly than they would otherwise because the light seriously affects their natural wake-sleep cycle．"They haven't proved it though，" says Dieter Kunz，the team's director at Charite's Psychiatric Clinic in St．Hedwig's Hospital in Berlin．
Similarly，exposure to just 10 minutes of normal bathroom lighting is enough to free the sleep hormone melatonin，which regulates people's natural wake-sleep cycle and makes them sleepy at nightfall．
Ten years ago，a team of British and American researchers detected a photo-pigment（光敏色素） in the human eye that signals to the body whether it is day or night，summer or winter．The photo-pigment is especially sensitive to blue light．
"The blue light more or less tells the body，'It's daytime，be awake，'" Kunz says．Monitors have a mostly cold white light content and scientists suspect the photo-pigment may react similarly to it．So the longer people look into the bright light，the more awake they become - and then sleep poorly．
A lot of people have difficulty "switching off" in the evening．About half of the women in Germany and a quarter of the men sleep poorly．
Environmental factors are only one of the possible causes．Job stress as well as personal and health concerns are also the main reasons for their sleep problems．
In addition，electronic objects' standby lights and indicator lamps can be annoying in the dark and affect sleep．"Sound scientific evidence is still lacking on this matter，" Kunz notes．
According to Kunz，those who cannot go without their computer in the evening should turn down the blue content if possible and lower the brightness somewhat．"But nobody does that because，after all，you want to concentrate while working at the computer and the light helps the brain．"The passage is mainly about ____________．
| A．natural wake-up cycles |
| B．the effect of light on sleep |
| C．personal and health concerns |
| D．functions of computer monitors |
The underlined word “which” in Paragraph 2 refers to_____．
| A．normal bathroom lighting |
| B．10-minute exposure to lighting |
| C．the release process of a chemical |
| D．a chemical affecting one’s sleep cycle |
We can learn from the passage that ______．
| A．the blue light has a calming effect． |
| B．the photo-pigment tells people day or night |
| C．women in Germany use computers more often than men |
| D．it has been proved that standby lights affect people’s sleep |
A
We need your help -- actually, we all need each other's help!
Although dinner might be just about our only daily opportunity to sit down together, catch up and eat a healthy meal, we tend to be too busy/stressed/tired (you can throw in a dozen other reasons) to cook ourselves. The kids are shrieking, everyone is starving and your fridge contains nothing but a few squishy squashes and a limp carrot. So what do we all do? We give up and give in to some awful food choices that someone in some far-off factory or fast-food restaurant "cooked" without one bit of love in their heart. And this is making us sick and fat and it's killing us.
Why not try HOME COOKED SUNDAYS? The idea is simple: Use the one day of the week we do have time to cook -- Sundays. Let's make it a fun bonding activity -- and a wildly productive and delicious one, too. Let's use Sundays to shop, prep and cook with our families (hey, everyone can pitch in!), and then enjoy a great sit-down dinner at the family table. Let's turn this into a cherished weekly ritual（惯例）.
To get people excited and cooking again, Kirstin Uhrenholdt (she is Danish and -- no kidding -- grew up on a fruit farm) and I wrote The Family Cooks, a cookbook filled with easy, healthy and tasty recipes.
We included lots of tips and tricks to avoid an unhealthy week -- including how to avoid junk food hazards in the supermarket, and ways that small and big kids can help you cook. We know you have good ones, too. So let's share all our great ideas and inspire others to give it a try, because we know that Home Cooked Sundays will guarantee calmer and healthier weeknights -- and give us the perfect way to start the week connecting with our kids while teaching them a thing or two about health and happiness.
Will you help make home-cooked meals synonymous with Sundays? Share your ideas, inspirations and best tips on how you prep your fridge on Sunday for a smooth week ahead. Send us your three best tips and favorite go-to recipe for Sunday dinner.
We will post ours, and together, we'll make Home Cooked Sunday the single best and most delicious day of the week!The problem mentioned in Paragraph 2 is that .
| A．people give up cooking for many reasons |
| B．many people have been killed by fast food |
| C．there are only a few good fast-food restaurants |
| D．some people don’t know how to love and be loved |
The author advises readers to .
| A．attend a cooking competition |
| B．start cooking on Sundays regularly |
| C．buy the cookbook The Family Cooks |
| D．spend more time with families on Sundays |
Conservationists have made plans to preserve and protect the world's most important species of coral, in a response to increasing threats that they say will lead to "functional extinction" within decades．
Led by scientists at the Zoological Society of London, the Edge Coral Reefs project has identified 10 coral species in most urgent risk of becoming extinct．The scientists say that reefs are under pressure from a variety of threats including rising sea temperatures due to climatic instability, increased acidity（酸性）, overfishing and pollution．
The Edge plan, which focuses on the most evolutionarily distinct and globally endangered species , will take a regional approach to conservation．This means focusing on the "coral triangle" around the Philippines, the West Indian Ocean around the Mozambique channel, and in the Caribbean channel．
"Coral reefs are threatened with functional extinction in the next 20-50 years, due predominantly to global climatic instability," said Catherine Head, coordinator of the reefs project．"In these regions, we'll be supporting and training in-country conservationists to carry out research and implement targeted conservation actions," she said．"Their projects will last for two years．We provide them with a whole host of tools to carry out their projects including funding and intensive training．" She added．
Coral reefs are the planet's most diverse marine ecosystem, known as the rainforests of the oceans．Despite taking up under 0．2% of the ocean floor, they provide food and shelter for almost a third of all sea life．If we lose the ecosystems, we lose not only the biodiversity, but we also lose the capability of people to obtain income and food from coral reefs．
Climatic instability, which leads to rising sea temperatures, causes corals to bleach(漂白)．Bleaching occurs when sea temperatures rise and this causes the coral tissue to expel their symbiotic algae called zooxanthellae - these are what give the coral their color．Bleached corals often die if the stress continues．Among the 10 species chosen to start the Edge project are the pearl bubble coral, a food source for the hawksbill turtle, and the Mushroom coral, which supports at least 15 brightly colored fish．What is the main idea of the passage?
| A．Scientists are taking measures to protect coral. |
| B．Scientists are doing research about coral reef. |
| C．Why some coral are dying out. |
| D．People should change climate to protect coral. |
Which of the following can’t threaten the existence of coral?
| A．Overfishing． |
| B．Polluted water |
| C．The increase in sea temperature. |
| D．Human exploration． |
What is the bad result of coral extinction?
| A．It help to keep the balance of the marine ecosystems |
| B．It will cause the temperature of sea water rise. |
| C．It can lead to the loss of about thirty percent of the marine life |
| D．It can destroy the rainforests on our earth． |
Which statement may Catherine Head agree with?
| A．Nearly all kinds of coral species are at risk. |
| B．Increased acidity has a negative on the existence of coral. |
| C．Climatic instability can’t affect corals. |
| D．It will takes decades to complete the Edge Coral Reefs project. |
How will the scientists help carry out the Edge Coral Reefs project?
| A．By providing tools and money. |
| B．By doing some experiments. |
| C．By removing some dangerous sea animals. |
| D．By punishing the people who break the rules. |
An opportunity for you to ride and compete with other enthusiasts of small displacement motorcycles. 200 miles of beautiful East Texas back roads starting and finishing at the Boles Field Recreational Area in the Sabine National Forest near Shelbyville, Texas with a rest stop and lunch at Sawmill Town USA in Newton, Texas. There will be a spectator class(观众组) if you would like to ride your larger street bike on the course. Competition classes will consist of the following: Class I-0 to 60cc, Class II-61 to 125cc, Class III-126 to 250cc, and Class IV-stock Cushman scooters. The Spectator Class won’t be scored but will be eligible for door prizes. Scoring for the competition - 200 points if the rider completes all miles on time. Extra points for age of machine, 2 points added for each year under 1990 model year. (i.e. 1960 model receives 60 additional points).
Class I bikes will go out from Boles Field at 8:00 am. Class II and Class IV bikes will depart Boles Field at 8:30 am. Class III bikes will leave Boles Field at 9:00 am .There may be secret check points along the route.
All classes will check in between 11:45 am and 12:15 pm at Sawmill Town USA, where a general membership meeting will be held at 1:00 pm.
Class I will leave Sawmill Town at 2:00 pm. Class II and IV will leave at 2:30 pm. Class III will leave at 3:00 pm. Check in at Boles Field between 5:45 pm and 6:15 pm. Awards will be given as soon as the results are tabulated.
Entry Fee: $30.00 @ contestant for Classes I through IV .Trophies for first place in each class. $100.00 prize for Overall Winner . $20.00 entry fee for Spectator Class .
For more information: P.O. Box 534 Joaquin, Texas 75954Where will the prizes be given away?
| A．East Texas. | B．Joaquin, Texas |
| C．The Boles Field. | D．Sawmill Town. |
The competitor completing all miles on time on a 1980 model motorcycle will get_____.
| A．180 points. | B．220 points. |
| C．200 points. | D．20 points. |
From the passage we can know ______.
| A．the Spectator Class can take part free of charge. |
| B．the Road Endurance Run is non-stop. |
| C．the route should be covered within at most 10 hours. |
| D．The riders have to ride a distance of 200 miles. |
What does the underlined word ”eligible” mean ?
| A．Qualified. | B．Concerned. |
| C．Grateful. | D．Desperate. |
What type of writing is this text?
| A．An exhibition guide. | B．An art show review. |
| C．An announcement. | D．An official report. |
As more and more people speak the global languages of English, Chinese, Spanish, and Arabic, other languages are rapidly disappearing. In fact, half of the 6,000-7,000 languages spoken around the world today will likely die out by the next century, according to the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
In an effort to prevent language loss, scholars from a number of organizations- UNESCO and National Geographic among them –have for many years been documenting dying languages and the cultures they reflect.
Mark Turin, a scientist at the Macmillan Center, Yale University, who specializes in the languages and oral traditions of the Himalayas, is following in that tradition. His recently published book, A Grammar of Thangmi with an Ethnolinguistic Introduction to the Speakers and Their Culture, grows out of his experience living, looking and raising a family in a village in Nepal.
Documenting the Tangmi language and culture is just a starting point for Turin, who seeks to include other languages and oral traditions across the Himalayans reaches of India, Nepal, Bhutan, and China. But he is not content to simply record these voices before they disappear without record.
At the University of Cambridge Turin discovered a wealth of important materials- including photographs, films, tap recordings, and field notes- which had remained unstudied and were badly in need of care and protection.
Now, through the two organizations that he has founded—the Digital Himalaya Project and the World Oral Literature Project- Turin has started a campaign to make such documents, found in libraries and stores around the world, available not just to scholars but to the youngers.
Generations of communities from whom the materials were originally collected. Thanks to digital technology and the widely available Internet. Turin notes, the endangered languages can be saved and reconnected with speech communities.According to the passage, many experts like Mark Turin are devoted to ____.
| A．looking for the lost languages |
| B．spreading the knowledge of global languages |
| C．saving the languages that are dying out |
| D．organizing new language research groups |
Why some languages are dying out?
| A．Because some people are ashamed of their native language. |
| B．Because the local people are forbidden to use them. |
| C．Because the global languages are widely used . |
| D．Because the people who use them are dying out. |
What does Turin do in his work?
| A．Listen, copy and store. |
| B．Copying, experiment and protect. |
| C．Protect , collect and report. |
| D．Document, protect and reconnect. |
Which of the following may be useful in Turin’s work?
| A．Cameras and radios. | B．Recorders and computers. |
| C．Telescopes and TVs. | D．Telephones and fax. |
What is the main idea of the passage?
| A．Some scientists are trying to rescue disappearing languages. |
| B．Some languages are becoming extinct. |
| C．There are various languages in the world. |
| D．Not all languages are in use. |
Earlier this month, California police cleared what was said to be the largest homeless encampment in the United States. About 200 homeless people were living at the camp in San Jose, California. Officials said police officers and city workers acted because the area was unclean.
The homeless people were living near Silicon Valley, the country's high technology center. Some people there have made millions, even billions of dollars from high-tech devices and services. But others have no money and no place to live.
Federal officials believe there are hundreds of thousands of homeless people nationwide on any given day. Each one lacks a permanent place to live. Reasons for homelessness can include the high cost of housing, poverty and unemployment. Other reasons are mental health problems and just plain bad luck.
In Los Angeles, a group called PATH searches along flood channels and major roads for homeless camps.. Its workers look for people who have no permanent shelter.
Jorge Guzman was one of the people hoping to help the homeless. He says they make their camps where they are not seen -- behind buildings or in forests or parks.
"They just don't want to be noticed. They're doing their thing out here and, you know, they're just trying to survive."
City workers periodically clear away small trees and plants, uncovering homeless campers. Workers in Whittier try to move people out of homeless camps and into a home of their own. But housing is costly. Still, worker Tomasz says he has been able to help some people.
"It's really good to see the steps when people are leaving their encampments and they're transitioning to either transitional housing, and after when they obtain their own housing."
But there are many other homeless people still living on the streets or in camps, moving when their campsites are taken down.Why did California police clear the homeless encampment?
| A．Because the area was unclean. |
| B．Because the homeless people often fight. |
| C．Because the government has built new houses for them. |
| D．Because they badly affected the image of the city. |
Which is NOT the reason causing homelessness?
| A．Mental health problems | B．Plain bad luck |
| C．Being abandoned. | D．The high cost of housing, |
According to the passage ,where may the homeless live?
| A．In buildings behind parks. |
| B．In camps in forests. |
| C．In apartments near Silicon Valley |
| D．In permanent shelters. |
We can describe Tomasz as ____.
| A．generous | B．honest |
| C． grateful | D．helpful |
Which of the following can replace the underlined phrase “take down”?
| A．Write down. | B．Break down. |
| C．Pull down. | D．Set down. |
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