Sportsmen in the running races of the Olympics are great athletes, but even the slow runners of the running world —joggers in the park —have good health. A study out this week in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology finds that even 5 to 10 minutes a day of slow running is enough to extend life by several years, compared with not running at all.
The new study focused on a group of more than 55, 000 men and women aged 18 to 100. About a quarter of them were runners. Over 15 years, those who ran just 50 minutes a week or fewer at a slow speed were less likely to die from either cardiovascular(心血管的)disease or other causes, compared with those who didn’t run at all.
The study suggests relatively low efforts are necessary to benefit from jogging, but it can be better to exercise more often. “A little bit is good but a little more is probably better,” says Dr. Aaron Baggish. A 2013 study in Denmark suggested that the secret of maximum longevity is up to 2. 5 hours of running a week.
Although running can make you less likely to have cardiovascular disease, it doesn’t entirely take the risk away from you. “There is no question that the healthier you are and the more exercise you do, the longer you’ll live and the better your quality of life will be,” Dr. Baggish says. “But it doesn’t mean you’ll never get sick.”
“Many long-term runners do not run because they want to live longer,” Dr. Baggish notes. “They run because it makes them feel better every day.”
For these runners, the cost of feeling good can be injuries, so Dr. Baggish supports the value of what he calls “active rest.” His belief, not supported by any recent research, is that it’s a good idea to spend 25% of exercise time over the course of a year running at a slow speed or doing other activities like swimming or biking.
1．What does the new study mainly show us?| A．The best way to run. | B．The best time to run. |
| C．The importance of running. | D．The popularity of running. |
| A．It can result from running often. | B．It’s not completely preventable. |
| C．It’s not so serious as most people think. | D．It can be treated by some kind of exercise. |
| A．Staying active all the time. | B．Swimming more, run less. |
| C．Having a big rest after doing sports. | D．Taking a little light exercise. |
| A．Health. | B．Business. | C．Society. | D．Medicine. |
| A．having not given | B．not having given |
| C．having not been given | D．not having been given |
“Marilyn, you have so much determination and so much heart. If you work at it you’ll be a fine swimmer,” Gus Ryder said to me after I finished a one-mile race in the freezing cold Lake Ontario.
I believed him and started swimming for Gus. Every day, we trained for hours in open water. But no matter how hard I worked, I still came in third or fourth. Four years later, it was clear that I was never going to the Olympics. That’s when Gus suggested I challenge the famous American long-distance swimmer Florence Chadwick to swim the thirty-two miles across Lake Ontario from New York to Toronto.
The idea had never occurred to me, but Gus had made up his mind. “I wasn’t sure Florence could make it. If we could swim one stroke further than her, it would be worth it,” Gus encouraged me.
Eventually, I decided to do it for Gus, and for myself.
The race started at 10 pm on September 6. It was cloudy, windy, and very dark. When I looked around, I couldn’t see where the lake ended and the sky began.
“Marilyn, just follow my light and I will guide you across this lake,” said Gus, who had a big flashlight and shone it just ahead of me from the lifeboat.
Florence swam for about four hours before she quit. But it wasn’t until several hours later, when I was having difficulty, that Gus told me that Florence was out and that I was the only one left!
I felt very encouraged. But it was such a long night that Gus had to do his best to keep me going. At the dawn, he even began writing messages on a chalkboard to keep my thoughts positive. Once he wrote, “You know you can do it. You can do it for me!” Another time he even wrote, “If you give up, I give up.”
By midday I felt so tired that I started falling asleep. So Gus started swimming with me to get my attention back. “I’m here to swim with you, Marilyn. Come on!” he said.
At the very moment, I began to experience a very unusual feeling.
After twenty-one hours in the water, we began approaching the shore.
One day before Christmas, Mom and Dad called me into the family room. I knew what we were going to discuss. Every year we would choose a family who needed some help, and we would secretly take gifts to their house. Dad said, “It’s time we decided which family to help this year.”
Some years it had been really easy to decide, but this year I couldn’t think of anyone. When none of us said anything, Dad looked at Mom, “Maybe Mom has some advice.” Mom smiled, “Actually, I do know of someone who needs our help. This year I think we should help Mrs. Brown.”
“But, Mom,” I said, “she’s not poor or sick. She doesn’t even like kids. Besides, she seems to have plenty of money, we always see her dressed in nice clothes.”
“I know that Mrs. Brown has enough money to take care of herself,” Mom said. “And I know that she isn’t very pleasant to be around. But that’s exactly why I think she needs our help.”
I listened as Mom continued. “Mrs. Brown has three children who have children of their own but they never come to see her. She is very lonely and unhappy. I think she needs someone to let her know that she is loved.” “You mean she’s poor in love?” I asked. “Yes, and sometimes it’s much more painful to be poor in love than it is to be poor in money.”
We were all quiet for a few minutes. Then Dad said, “Let’s take a vote. How many of us would like Mrs. Brown to be our special family this year?” Mom’s hand went up. Dad raised his hand. Looking around, I slowly raised mine.
All the following week we cut out snow flakes, made popcorn strings and red and green chains from paper strips to decorate the Christmas tree, and prepared cookies and candies. We carefully put everything inside one big box on which was Mrs. Brown’s name.
Then came the big day. We decided to give Mrs. Brown a surprise. Since the box was very big, we decided Dad would carry it to the door. After he returned, it would be my job to ring the doorbell and run back before Mrs. Brown opened her door.
Dad carefully set the box beside the door before he left to hide himself away.
On Christmas Eve, my family decided to visit Mrs. Brown.
Scientist， conservation organizations and government trying to stop the trend of extinction （灭绝） often focus on protected areas such as national parks and wildlife preserves. But with as many as million species（物种） at risk， this plan of action may not be enough to conserve wildlife.
Slowing the mass extinction that now appears to be underway will require more creative means of coexisting alongside wild plants and animals. A new study indicates the effectiveness of some such approaches by examining some lands managed by indigenous groups.
“ We show really strongly that， from a biodiversity standpoint in terms of species richness，indigenous － managed lands are at least comparable to protected areas， ” says biologist Richard Schuster of Carleton University. And in some places， they are better than parks and preserves －even though indigenous communities may use their lands’ resources by hunting or searching for food.
Schuster and his team analyzed more than 15，000 areas in Australia， Brazil and Canada. They found that the total diversity of wildlife was highest on lands either managed or co － managed by indigenous groups， while randomly selected areas with no formal protection were the least bio－diverse. For threatened species in particular， indigenous lands scored slightly higher than protected lands on overall species richness in Brazil and Canada， as well as higher for threatened animals in Australia.
Each country has a different geography， climate and history. Yet remarkably， Schuster says， the best indicator for species diversity is whether a given area was managed by an indigenous community. He pointed out that practices such as sustainable（可持续的） hunting， fishing and searching， as well as burning， are more likely to occur in such areas. Don Hankins， an ecologist at California State University，agrees. “ there’ s probably going to be more of a connection to the land， ” he says， “ and a use of the land for the things that are there， compared to a national park. ”
“ It’ s really important to listen to the people who live on the land and have them drive the stewardship efforts going forward， ” Schuster says， adding that partnering with indigenous communities may enable the world’ s countries to better meet a wide range of conservation goals： “ We really need all the help we can get as a global community to prevent species extinction that we’ re facing right now. ”
1．What does the underlined word “ indigenous” probably mean in Paragraph 2？| A．Social. | B．Native. |
| C．Protected. | D．Threatened. |
| A．National parks are even higher in species diversity. |
| B．Indigenous communities overhunted on their lands. |
| C．Some preserves almost have no formal protection. |
| D．Indigenous lands do better in keeping bio－diversity. |
| A．Species diversity depends on geographical positions. |
| B．Humans’ everyday activities are no longer sustainable. |
| C．Indigenous groups have a close bond with their lands. |
| D．Protected areas work perfectly in wildlife protection. |
| A．Beating back extinction. | B．Dealing with environmental problems. |
| C．Setting up nature reserves. | D．Fighting against unsustainable behaviors. |
It is hard not to desire victory with all your efforts when the world seems so competitive, especially if you’re a boy growing up with those values. A boy called Edward grew up in a similar environment where winning was all that was valued, and he longed to succeed. He was good at running, so he called everyone in the nearby villages for a race. A large group of people from around came to see this exciting event!
Edward had been training hard for this race. He ran among the strongest boys from around the villages, and the young boy came out victorious! The crowd went wild with excitement as they cheerfully held banners (横幅) praising him. The boy loved the attention. It made him feel happy and energetic.
There were two types of races-short distances and long distances. The boy was unbeatable in both the races he competed in. The crowd loved him even more after the second victory; they clapped with excitement. The boy felt very proud of his achievements.
But among the crowd was a wise older man who did not seem as impressed with the boy’s performances as the rest. Just as the boy thought the races for the day were over, the old man shouted from the crowd, “There is one more race left, the most important one.” The boy was surprised by the additional race, but he was, confident he could win any race.
The old man brought two new competitors for the boy, a blind man and a weak old lady. “What type of race is this? I can easily win them,” the boy said. “The most important one,” repeated the old man. So, the boy ran the race as he knew he would win this time, too. When the boy crossed the finish line, the blind man was still at the start, and the old lady had just started to move. The boy was successful, and he raised his hands with great joy after his victory.
The most important life lesson I’ve learned from running is to run at my own pace. This lesson has guided me in many ways.
Running is a metaphor for life. I realized this while
I have
Running carries its own set of expectations, including what it meant to be a strong runner. But expectations also
I used to think it was young people who bore the brunt(冲击)of
That is the message my running coach was trying to convey.
Their pace is not
| A．In turn | B．In particular | C．In advance | D．In depth |
| A．training | B．struggling | C．competing | D．searching |
| A．pitiful | B．grateful | C．impressed | D．embarrassed |
| A．resolution | B．practice | C．limitation | D．motivation |
| A．Against time | B．Ahead of time | C．Of all time | D．Over time |
| A．exposed | B．compared | C．applied | D．suggested |
| A．music | B．business | C．requirement | D．efficiency |
| A．subscribe | B．extend | C．contribute | D．refer |
| A．center on | B．hope for | C．decide on | D．call for |
| A．boss | B．grandparent | C．athlete | D．citizen |
| A．peer pressure | B．separation anxiety | C．sleeping disorder | D．age discrimination |
| A．natural | B．unacceptable | C．ironic | D．significant |
| A．Mind | B．Expect | C．Forget | D．Abandon |
| A．basically | B．gradually | C．alternatively | D．necessarily |
| A．different | B．amazing | C．common | D．fair |
“What’s that squeaky noise?” Meg asked her eight-year-old daughter, Haley. She looked down at the girl’s shoes and noticed her sneakers’ soles had been torn open. Meg and Haley were on their way home from school, and it had just stopped raining. Water on the road had leaked into Haley’s damaged shoes, making a squishy noise.
Meg immediately took her daughter to a shoe store to buy her a new pair of sneakers. She had some money for groceries but thought getting Haley a new pair of shoes was more important. “How about these?” asked Haley, who was checking shoes in the section only for boys. “Mama, I want these limited-edition sneakers. Buddy loves a TV show and always tells me how he wishes to wear such shoes.”
Meg frowned. Not only did she not have money to afford two pairs of shoes, but she wondered why Haley was too interested in getting her classmate Buddy a new pair. Sensing her mother’s hesitation, Haley continued, “Buddy is from a very poor family, mama. Poorer than us. His shoes are torn and look miserable. Everybody laughs at him. Please, can we buy these shoes for him? You can buy mine later.”
Meg thought for a while and decided it would be best if she bought her daughter shoes for now. “You will fall sick if you keep wearing your wet, torn shoes. I’m sorry, honey, but you need a new pair.” Haley sighed heavily and agreed. She was not excited to see the new pair of sneakers her mom had bought for her.
As Meg and Haley left, Bob, the shoe store owner who knew Meg well, walked to the entrance and sighed. He had overheard everything and knew what it was like to live in poverty. He wanted to help Haley fulfill her mission of helping Buddy but didn’t know how. Moreover, the pair of shoes Haley wanted to get for Buddy was a limited-edition collection, which had been ordered by someone else. He could not simply give them away.
Suddenly, Bob remembered something and climbed downstairs where old shoes were stored.
The next morning, Haley was shocked to find a shoe box lying outside her house.
| A．Leaving his home. | B．Parting from his son. | C．Taking early retirement. |
| A．Lack of moral support. | B．Loss of self-worth. | C．Change of living habits. |
| A．Public services they ask for. |
| B．Health care available to them. |
| C．Contributions they can make. |
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