(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

阅读理解

　　I met Connie the day she was admitted to the hospital ward, where I worked as a volunteer．Her husband, Bill, stood nervously nearby．Although Connie was in the final stages of her fight against cancer, she was cheerful．We got her settled in．As we became acquainted, she told me that how frustrating it was to be married 32 years to a man who often called her “a silly woman”．

　　“Oh, I know Bill loves me, ”she said, “but he has never been one to say he loves me, or send cards to me．”

　　Bill visited Connie every day．When she began sleeping more, he paced up and down the hallway outside her room．Soon, when she no longer watched television and had fewer waking moments, I began spending more of my volunteer time with Bill．He said he could not express his feelings about the fact that his wife was dying．

　　One day, I got him on the subject of women and how we need romance in our lives；how we love to get sentimental cards and love letters．

　　“Do you tell Connie you love her? ” I asked(knowing his answer), and he looked at me as if I was crazy．

　　“I don’t have to, ”he said．“She knows I do! ”

　　“I’m sure she knows, ”I said, “but she needs to hear what she has meant to you all these years．Please think about it．”

　　Two days later I walked down the hospital ward at noon．There stood Bill, leaning up against the wall in the hallway, staring at the floor．I already knew from the head nurse that Connie had died at 11 a. m.．

　　When Bill saw me, he allowed himself to come into my arms for a long time．His face was wet with tears and he was trembling．“I have to say something．”he said．“I have to say how good I feel about telling her．”

　　I went into the room to say my own goodbye to Connie．There, on the bedside table, was a large Valentine card saying, “To my wonderful wife…I love you．”

(1)

(2)

(3)

阅读理解

　　Inventor, physicist, surveyor, astronomer, biologist, artist…Robert Hooke was all these and more．Some say he was the greatest experimental scientist of the seventeenth century．Once he worked with renowned men of science like Christian Huygens, Antony van Leeuwenhoek, Robert Boyle, Isaac Newton and the great architect, Christopher Wren．

　　Hooke’s early education began at home, under the guidance of his father．He entered Westminster School at the age of thirteen, and from there he went to Oxford, where he came in contact with some of the best scientists in England．Hooke impressed them with his skill at designing experiments and devising instruments．In 1662, at the age of twenty－eight, he was named Curator of Experiments of the newly formed Royal Society of London．Hooke accepted the job, even though he knew that it had no money to pay him!

　　Watching living things through the microscope was one of his favorite occupations．He devised a compound microscope for this purpose．One day while observing a cork(软木)under a microscope, he saw honeycomb－like structures．They were cells－the smallest units of life．In fact, it was Hooke who coined the term “cell” as the boxlike cells of the cork reminded him of the cells of a monastery(修道院)．

　　Perhaps because of his varied interests, Hooke often left experiments unfinished．Others took up where he left off and then claimed sole(独占的)credit．This sometimes led to quarrels with colleagues．One work that he finished was his book MICROGRAPHIA, a volume that reveals the immense potential of the microscope．The book also includes, among other things, ideas on gravity and light which may have helped scientists like Newton while they were developing their own theories on these phenomena．

　　Hooke made valuable contributions to astronomy too．A crater(陨石坑)on the moon is named after him in appreciation of his services to this branch of science．

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

(5)

阅读理解

　　Today we tell you about some new understanding of why cutting the main branch of a plant or tree can lead to better development．

　　The findings are from researchers on two continents．Professor Prezemyslaw Prusinkiewicz of the University of Calgary in Canada led the research with scientists from Britain and Sweden．Their study appears in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences．

　　Researchers have known since the 1930s that the actively growing tip of a plant produces a hormone(荷尔蒙)called auxin(生长素)．This hormone flows down the main stem．Scientists say the auxin has an indirect effect on buds(芽)on the side of the stem to prevent branching．

　　These buds themselves also produce auxin．The research suggests that to grow, they have to be able to export the hormone into the main stem．But the flow from the stem tip prevents them from doing this．The researchers wanted to find out how this blocking happens．

　　Professor Prusinkiewicz is on leave in Australia, but he sent us an e－mail suggesting a simple way to understand the process．Think of a major road crowded with traffic．So many cars are on the main road that the cars on the side roads cannot enter．

　　The stem is like the crowded main road．The new research shows that the buds on the side cannot export their auxin into the main stem because it is too full．But if that main shoot is pruned(修剪), other buds below it can start exporting．They are no longer prevented from growing．

　　Ottoline Leyser from the University of York says that after a plant is pruned, all the inhibited(被抑制的)shoot tips compete with each other to grow．In doing this, the branches influence each other’s growth．Nearby shoot tips are more likely to affect each other than those that are far apart from each other．

　　Professor Leyser says the strongest branches grow best, wherever they may be on the plant．The study found that the main shoot grows the best of all not because of its position at the top of the plant, but mostly because it got there first．

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

(5)

阅读理解

　　What exactly are white lions? “They are a color variation of regular lions, ”says William Swanson, director of animal research at the Cincinnati Zoo, in Ohio．

　　White lions are the result of a rare color gene mutation(变异)．When both a male and a female lion carry the same white genes, there is a good chance that one or more of their cubs(幼兽)will be born with white fur．

　　Not many lions carry the white mutation．In nature, it’s rare．A mutation can make an animal’s survival more difficult．For example, being white makes it harder for the animal to mix with its surroundings．Mutations also can cause physical problems, so those animals generally do not survive long enough to reproduce．

　　But sometimes white lion cubs are born among wild lions, especially in two areas of South Africa．

　　In 1975 two white cubs were spotted in the wild in South African reserve．They were seized and sent to a zoo．Today about 500 cubs of those two white lions and a few others known to have the white color gene live around the world in zoos, circuses, farms and private preserves．

　　White lions may be extremely rare in the wild, but breeders(饲养动物的人)know how to create more of them．This has created serious concern and debate．

　　White lions continue to exist only because they are inbred by people－fathers and daughters, sisters and brothers．Scientists worry that it also will cause health issues for white lions．

　　Inbreeding to create white lions as moneymaking attractions is only one concern．Another concern is that some people want to release captive－bred(人工繁殖的)white lions into the wild in South Africa to restore balance to the ecosystem．However, not everyone agrees that releasing these white lions into the wild is a good idea．Dan York of Hillsdale College has been studying white lion genetics and is worried．He says that because so many of today’s white lions are inbred, it could spread health problems．If they breed with wild lions, they’ll pass on the genetic problems to the wild population．

　　Instead of releasing captive－bred white lions, York suggests that South Africa concentrate on protecting all of its wild lions．That would ensure the safety of the wild population of lions，which may produce healthy white cubs in the future．

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

(5)

阅读理解

　　Each new school year brings fresh reminders of what educators call the summer learning gap．Some call it the summer learning setback．Put simply, it means the longer kids are out of school, the more they forget．The only thing they might gain is weight．Recent studies show that children gain weight more quickly in the summer vacation than when they are in school．

　　Most American schools follow a traditional nine－month calendar．Students get winter and spring breaks and about ten weeks of summer vacation．Some schools follow a year?round calendar．They hold classes for about eight weeks at a time, with a few weeks off in between．But many experts point out that the number of class days in a year－round school is generally the same as in a traditional school．

　　Last year, a study at Ohio State University reported that year－round students did not learn any more than other students．Lead researcher Paul von Hippel said “year－round schools don't really solve the problem of the summer learning setback．They simply spread it out across the year”．

　　Across the country, research shows that students from poor families fall farther behind over the summer vacation than other students．Experts say this can be prevented．They note that many schools and local governments offer the programs that can help．

　　But calling them “summer schools” could be a problem．The director of the summer learning center at Johns Hopkins, Ron Fairchild, recently wrote about this issue on his blog．

　　He said that in American culture, the idea of summer vacation is connected to the beliefs about freedom and the joys of childhood．He said research with groups of different parents in Chicago and Baltimore found that almost all strongly disliked the term summer school．They said it created an image of children being forced to do work they missed during the school year．

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

(5)

阅读理解

　　Have you ever thought about what determines the way we are when we grow up?Remember the TV program Seven Up?It started following the lives of a group of children in 1973．We first meet them as wide－eyed seven－year－olds and catch up with them at seven－year intervals：nervous 14－year－olds, serious 21－year－olds and then grown－ups．

　　Some of the stories are inspiring, others sad, but what is interesting in almost all the cases is the way in which the children's early hopes and dreams are shown in their future lives．For example, at seven, Tony is a lively child who says he wants to become a sportsman or a taxi driver．When he grows up, he goes on to do both．How about Niki?She says, “I would like to find out about the moon．”And she goes on to become a space scientist．As a child, soft－spoken Bruce says he wants to help “poor children” and ends up teaching in India．

　　But if the lives of all the children had followed this pattern, the program would be far less interesting than it actually was．It was the children whose childhood did not prepare them for what was to come that made the program so interesting．Where did their ideas come from about what they wanted to do when they grew up?Are children influenced by what their parents do, by what they see on television or by what their teachers say?How great is the effect of a single important event?Many film directors, including Steven Spielberg, say that an early visit to the cinema was the turning point in their lives．Dr．Margaret McAllister, who has done a lot of research in this area, thinks that the major factors are parents, friends and their wider society．

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

阅读理解

　　Every people has their own way of saying things, their own special expressions．Many everyday American expressions are based on colors．

　　Red is a hot color．Americans often use it to express heat．They may say they are red hot about something unfair．When they are red hot they are very angry about something．The small hot tasting peppers found in many Mexican foods are called red hots for their color and their fiery taste．Fast loud music is popular with many people．They may say the music is red hot, especially the kind called Dixieland jazz．

　　Pink is a lighter kind of red．People sometimes say they are in the pink when they are in good health．The expression was first used in America at the beginning of the twentieth century．It probably comes from the fact that many babies are born with a nice pink color that shows that they are in good health．

　　Blue is a cool color．The traditional blues music in the United States is the opposite of red hot music．Blues is slow, sad and soulful．Duke Ellington and his orchestra recorded a famous song－Mood Indigo－about the deep blue color, indigo．In the words of the song：“You aren't blue till you've had that Mood Indigo．”Someone who is blue is very sad．

　　The color green is natural for trees and grass．But it is an unnatural color for humans．A person who has a sick feeling stomach may say she feels a little green．A passenger on a boat who is feeling very sick from high waves may look very green．

　　Sometimes a person may be upset because he does not have something as nice as a friend has, like a fast new car．That person may say he is green with envy．Some people are green with envy because a friend has more dollars or greenbacks．Dollars are called greenbacks because that is the color of the back side of the paper money．

　　The color black is used often in expressions．People describe a day in which everything goes wrong as a black day．The date of a major tragedy is remembered as a black day．A blacklist is illegal now．But at one time, some businesses refused to employ people who were on a blacklist for belonging to unpopular organizations．

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

阅读理解

　　A new study suggests that the more teenagers watch television, the more likely they are to develop depression(抑郁)as young adults．But the extent to which TV may be to blame is a question that the study leaves unanswered．

　　The researchers used a national long?term survey of adolescent health to investigate the relationship between media use and depression．They based their findings on more than 4,000 adolescents who were not depressed when the survey began in 1995．

　　As part of the survey, the young people were asked how many hours of television or videos they watched daily．They were also asked how often they played computer games and listened to the radio．

　　Media use totaled an average of 5 and one?half hours a day．More than 2 hours of that was spent watching TV．

　　7 years later, in 2002, more than 7 percent of the young people had signs of depression．The average age at that time was 21．

　　Brian Primack at the University of Pittsburgh Medical School was the lead author of the new study．He says every extra hour of television meant an 8 percent increase in the chances of developing signs of depression．

　　The researchers say they did not find any such relationship with the use of other media such as movies, video games or radio．But the study did find that young men were more likely than young women to develop depression given the same amount of media use．

　　Doctor Primack says the study did not explore why watching TV causes depression．But one possibility, he says, is that it may take time away from activities that could help prevent depression, like sports and socializing．It might also interfere with sleep, he says, and that could have an influence．

　　The study was just published in the Archives of General Psychiatry．

　　In December, the journal Social Indicators Research published a study of activities that help lead to happy lives．Sociologists from the University of Maryland found that people who describe themselves as happy spend less time watching television than unhappy people．The study found that happy people are more likely to be socially active, to read, to attend religious services and to vote．

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

(5)