Healthy See, Healthy Do
Visit the grocery store on an empty stomach, and you will probably come home with a few things you did not plan to buy. But hunger is not the only cause of additional purchases. The location of store displays (摆放) also influences our shopping choices.
The checkout area is a particular hotspot for junk food. Studies have found that the products most commonly found there are sugary and salty snacks.
Adjoian and her colleagues wondered if such findings would apply to their city’s crowded urban checkout areas, so they selected three Bronx supermarkets for their own study.
Of the more than 2,100 shoppers they observed, just 4 percent bought anything from the checkout area. Among those who did, however, customers in the healthy lines purchased nutritious foods more than twice as often as those in the standard lines.
The potential influence may seem small, but Adjoian believes that changing more checkout lines would open customers’ eyes to nutritious, lower-calorie foods. Health department officials are now exploring ways to expand healthy options at checkout counters throughout New York City.
| A．These foods give people more energy. |
| B．They bought unhealthy foods 40 percent less often. |
| C．And it may make or break some healthy eating habits. |
| D．The supermarkets began to offer nutritious, lower-calorie foods. |
| E．These findings caught the attention of New York City Department of Health. |
| F．They replaced candies and cookies with fruits and nuts near the checkout counter. |
| G．And a few studies have suggested that simply swapping in healthier options can change customer behavior. |
One Saturday afternoon, I was watching TV in the living room with my grandpa when a blinding flash of lightning flashed across the sky, followed by a deafening sound, and the pictures on TV disappeared with that sound. Before I realized what had happened, a gray-white shadow rushed in through the open window and flew over my head. Bang! It hit the wall and slid off to the floor. Shaking with fear, I approached it cautiously and saw that it was a pigeon. It looked at me in fear, trying to open its wings and struggling its feet, but apparently powerless.
So I called my grandpa and immediately set out to give it a helping hand. Taking it in my hands, I felt a few drops of warmth on my hands. It was blood! I gently spread its wings and there were a few red feathers inside. “Don’t worry. We’ll get it out alive,” Grandpa said to me. Then he got the first-aid kit. With some cotton, we dried the blood, cleaned the wound and then put it under a hairdryer to dry. All went smoothly, for the pigeon had no strength left to resist. There happened to be an empty birdcage at home, so I put it in gently and added a little water and some grains.
For the next few days, the moment I got home from school, I would run to feed the pigeon. And Grandpa helped a lot, tidying up the cage daily. Little by little, its strength returned. One evening, I fed it with the biscuit I was eating. It enjoyed it! One week later, its wound almost healed (痊愈); its feathers grew and it became brave. Whenever I sat at the table eating biscuits, it looked up at me, cooing (咕咕地叫) constantly. To my joy, I could also reach into the cage to touch it. When I gently fingered its head, it playfully pecked (啄) at me. Finally it completely recovered. But every time I was with it, it seemed restless in the cage. To make it happy and pretty, I tied an orange string (线)around its leg.
One day, however, when I returned home, Grandpa met me at the door, looking embarrassed.
Sure enough, I saw a pigeon flying into the house the next afternoon!
It was raining like nothing before when Ehdaa Bujeldain, an English teacher living with her family in the mountains of Derna in eastern Libya , heard a loud noise that sounded like an explosion (爆炸). Later they learned that a dam (大坝) in Derna had broken down under the pressure of running water. For the next four days, they had no power or internet, and it was only recently that they started to fully understand of the damage caused by the floods.
“Half of the city has been destroyed. My mom’s relatives, my friends, my coworkers ——they are all gone. Now we, the survivors, are just ghost s in shells,” says Bujeldain, whose sadness can be easily told from her blank expression.
Five days have passed since the terrible flooding in Derna, Libya’s Red Crescent organization estimated that 11,300 people have died, while the city’s mayor believes the number of deaths could be as high as 20,000.
Derna is a coastal city with a seasonal river called the Wadi Derna. Despite the abnormally heavy rain, people living near the river had little warning before the floodwaters came rushing in on that terrible morning. United Nations aid chief Martin Griffiths described the scale of the flood as “appalling” (令人惊骇的) and blamed the flood partly on sudden climate change.
Now international aid teams are arriving in Derna, but they face challenges due to damaged roads, lack of access to power, water, and fuel. Tarhoni, doctor of the rescue team, warns that the most difficult weeks lie ahead. “One disaster is done and there is another to come,” he says. “The thousands and thousands of people who lost everything these people now need comfort, they need company, they need psychological support.”
1．What do we know about Bujeldain’s family from paragraph 1?| A．The explosion they heard led to the destruction of the dam. |
| B．Bujeldain saved her family from the floods with her bravery. |
| C．Bujeldain immediately recognized the outbreak of the floods. |
| D．For several days, they didn’t fully realize the seriousness of the floods. |
| A．They run out of energy and are very tired. |
| B．They feel lucky as they are safe and sound. |
| C．They are completely saddened and shocked. |
| D．They are sorry for the loss of their homeland. |
| A．The absence of warning. | B．The extraordinary rainfall. |
| C．Unexpected climate change. | D．The damage to environment. |
| A．Addressing mental problems. |
| B．Providing immediate medical care. |
| C．Conducting climate change research. |
| D．Rebuilding roads and access to resources. |
If English means endless new words, difficult grammar and sometimes strange pronunciation, you are wrong. Haven’t you noticed that you have become smarter since you started to learn a language?
According to a new study by a British university, learning a second language can lead to an increase in your brain power. Researchers found that learning other languages changes grey matter density (灰质密度). This is the area of the brain which processes (加工) information. It is similar to the way that exercise builds muscles. The study also found the younger people learn a second language, the greater the effect is.
A team led by Dr. Andrea Mechelli, from University College London (UCL), took a group of Britons who only spoke English. They were compared with a group of “early bilinguals” who had learnt a second language before the age of five, as well as a number of later learners.
Scans showed that grey matter density in the brain was greater in bilinguals than in people without a second language. But the longer a person waited before mastering a new language, the smaller the difference was.
“Our findings suggest that the structure of the brain is changed by the experience of learning a second language,” said the scientists. It means that the change itself increases the ability to learn.
Professor Dylan Vaughan Jones of the University of Wales, has researched the link between bilingualism and maths skills. “Having two languages gives you two windows on the world and makes the brain more flexible.” he said. “You are actually going beyond language and have a better understanding of different ideas.”
The findings were matched in a study of native Italian speakers who had learnt English as a second language between the ages of two and thirty-four. Reading, writing, and comprehension were all tested. The results showed that the younger they started to learn, the better. “Studying a language means you get an entrance to another world,” explained the scientists.
1．Why does the writer mention “exercise” in the second paragraph?| A．To make people believe language learning is helpful for their health. |
| B．To suggest language learning is also a kind of physical labor. |
| C．To prove that one needs more resources when he/she is learning a language. |
| D．To tell us that learning a language can train your brain effectively. |
| A．The ability of learning a second language is changing all the time. |
| B．The earlier you start to learn a second language, the higher the grey matter density is. |
| C．The experience of learning a second language has a bad effect on brain. |
| D．There is no difference between a later second language learner and one without a second language. |
| A．early learning of a second language helps in studying other subjects |
| B．learning a second language is the same as studying maths |
| C．Italian is the best choice for you as a second language |
| D．you’d better choose the ages between 2 and 34 to learn a second language |
| A．Language learning is closely connected with maths study. |
| B．Man has a great ability of learning a second language. |
| C．Studying a foreign language can improve man’s ability to think. |
| D．The study done by the researchers from UCL is failed finally. |
During the summer before Patty entered fifth grade, she decided to try a new sport. Swim training was nearly over and Patty was the fastest swimmer in her age group. She had always been the best. The neighborhood was offering a one-week tennis training course. Patty and her friend Darla got permission from their parents to join.
On Saturday morning, Darla’s mom took the girls to a store and bought them each a good, used tennis racket. “If you girls stick to tennis, then we’ll talk about a new racket. These will do for now.” The girls were excited about their new purchases. On Monday morning, at 7:00 a.m., Patty’s mom woke her up. “It’s time for tennis!” Patty covered her face. “Mom, it’s too early!” She made great effort to get out of bed and down to the breakfast table. Patty finished breakfast and ran to Darla’s house, then they walked to the court.
Mrs. Cane, the tennis coach, lined everyone up and started with the basics. After that, Mrs. Cane tirelessly taught them to practice their forehand and backhand. By the end of the week, Patty had made impressive progress. Mrs. Cane commented that Patty had lots of potential. Darla, on the other hand, was struggling. The other teenagers were having a tough time of it, too. Patty was the only one who seemed to get somewhere.
Since then, Darla had always been out in the August heat, practicing her serves or hitting the ball. Patty wasn’t really interested. She felt she was such a “natural” for tennis that she really didn’t need to practice. By the end of the summer, Darla began to get the hang of it. She joined a neighborhood junior tennis team. There would be matches every Thursday. Patty wanted to join as well, but she didn’t want to miss her favorite TV show. She told herself that she would join it when she got some free time. If Darla had fun, she would join the team in the spring.
The week before school started, Mrs. Cane held another training course.
Patty couldn’t stop thinking of her poor performance on the way home.
Students of a Nanjing senior high school brought joy to the elderly and brightened up their day by volunteering at a local nursing home last weekend. The nursing home,
Wang Hong, the programme
No Time
With a broad smile on her lips, 15-year old Sirin rushed to her mom to show off her new painting. But mom raised her eyebrows with eyes wide open, and spoke in an impatient tone, “No time, baby. Right now I am busy with an important talk. Just wait for some time,OK?”
Holding her oil painting, she frowned (皱眉), and then searched for her dad.
“Dad, see what I have done,” Sirin announced aloud in a thrilling voice. Her dad turned around while adjusting his tie, grinned at her, and showed his thumbs up!
Immediately, blowing her two cheeks, Sirin replied angrily, “Dad, you haven’t seen it yet.”
He smiled at her saying, “No time, baby. I will see it later.” He just patted her back lovingly, kissed her forehead, and rushed for his office.
She was not a kid to be pleased with simple gesture or smile. She stood there for a few seconds,and then stormed off to her own bedroom. Hot air was blowing from her nostrils (鼻孔); her face turned into apple red. She threw the painting on the table, slammed (把……砰地关上) the door and threw herself on her bed.
“Why is everybody so busy?” She recalled thousands of incidents that hurt her in pre-school, middle school and even in high school too! She assumed at least her own family members would give some values to her thoughts, but they were no exception. Unconsciously, her eyes were filled with tears.
The knocking sound on the door put a sudden brake to her thought. Her mom was calling her for dinner. Sirin deliberately came late to join them. She kept silent and didn’t look at anyone, scratching the table mat with her nail. Her mom was puzzled at the unusual behavior. Suddenly, the morning incident clicked in her mind. Softly, she asked, “Honey, did I do anything wrong?”
I made it all the way to fifth grade before anyone (except me) realized that I couldn’t see twenty feet in front of me. Our school had vision screenings (视力普查) every year, but somehow I had managed to fake good vision and pass the tests.
But then in the fifth grade, I failed. It was my turn to go into the screening room, and I nervously took my seat in front of the testing machine. The nurse told me to look into the little black machine and tell her which direction the letter E’s legs were pointing. Barely able to make out the black spot of an E, I made a guess: “Right, left, left, up, down, up, left, right”. I looked up at her.
She studied my face for a moment. Then she said, “Could you repeat that?”
I panicked. I’d never been asked to repeat it. And I hadn’t memorized the guess I’d just made up. I was trapped. So, I looked into the machine again and made up another sequence of guesses. I glanced over at the nurse, who was leaning forward with a frown on her face.
“You have no idea which way they’re facing, do you?” she asked.
“Not really,” I confessed.
“Can you even see the E at all?” she asked.
“Sort of.. no,” I admitted.
“Then why didn’t you just say so?” she demanded.
I didn’t respond. I thought the answer was obvious. Glasses in the fifth grade were a social death sentence. I would become a joke in my class.
The nurse sent me home with a note for my mother that said I needed to visit the eye doctor because I’d failed the vision test. The trip home today was very slow.
My mother (who wears glasses) said it would all be just fine. It wouldn’t hurt a bit, she said. But I wasn’t worried about pain—I was worried about looking like Super Geek (怪人).
The next day, my mother dragged me to the eye doctor’s office.
But then Monday morning came, and I had to face what I fear: the kids in my classroom.
The Night of San Juan
In the 1940, everyone in Old San Juan, a walled city in Puerto Rico, knew each other.
We neighborhood children played freely together on the narrow street. Only my lonely friend Joey was forbidden from joining us.
“Look, Elaine,” whispered my sister Amy. “He’s up there again, watching us play.”
I looked up. There he was, seated on the balcony floor. He was looking down at us sadly. No matter how hard Joey tried, he could not persuade his grandma to let him play on the street.
“Too many crazy drivers!” His grandma would shake her head and say, “Too dangerous!”
Besides her fear of danger on the street, Joey’s grandma kept to herself and never smiled, so most of us were afraid of her until my sister and I changed all that.
It was 23rd June, and that night was the Night of San Juan. Everyone would gather at the beach for this holiday, and at midnight people would jump backwards into the sea. It is said that doing this three times on the Night of San Juan brings good luck. I thought of my friend Joey. If he did this with us, his luck would probably change, and his grandma would allow him to play with us outside on the street.
“How can we get Joey to go to the beach with us tonight?”I asked Amy. The brave Amy immediately took action. She ran to Joey’s house and knocked loudly on the door. It slowly opened. “How can I help you?” Joey’s grandma asked.
I was terrified and even wanted to run away, but without hesitation, Amy stepped forward after taking a deep breath. “We’d like to know if Joey could go to the beach with our family tonight.”
“The beach?” Joey’s grandma asked in surprise.
“Y-y-yes,” I said. “Tonight is the Night of San Juan, and our parents take us to the beach every year.”
Joey’s grandma frowned at us. How silly to think she would ever let him go! I suddenly felt embarrassed and turned to leave, taking my sister’s arm and walking away.
Para. 1 “Wait,” we heard her voice behind us. “Come inside for some corn fritters(玉米馅饼).”
Para.2 Late that night, Joey went to the beach with us and I made a wish.
In southern China, there is a famous road
This road is sure
For the next few months, this road is not above the surface
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