阅读理解

　　Sometimes we cry because we are sad and sometimes because we are extremely happy．An irritant(刺激物), such as onion(洋葱)smell or grains of sand in the eye, can also make cry．In this case tears perform an obvious role in getting rid of substances that might harm the surface of the eye．

　　Dr．William Frey of the Dry Eye and Tear Research Center at St．Paul in Minnesota, USA, believes that tears from emotional causes may perform a similar role．He thinks that crying could get rid of emotional stress by washing away a chemical in the blood caused by strong emotions．To prove his theory, he hopes first to identify this chemical and then see if it is found in tears of sadness or happiness．

　　So far, Dr．Frey has failed to find out the difference between emotional tears and tears caused by an irritant in the eye．This may be because these substances themselves cause a degree of stress and emotion．What he has identified in all tears is a variety of biochemical(生化物)which are one of the causes of stress．A more detailed study may help us understand why sufferers from stress-related disorders cry less often than healthy people．Dr．Frey is also very interested to see if there ale any physiological(生理学的)explanations for why women, in general, cry five times more often than men, on average．

阅读理解

　　“I sat-in at a restaurant for six months, and when they finally agreed to serve me, they didn’t have what I wanted”－so went a famous line．In reality, the sit-in movement was not a joke．It began in Greensboro, North Carolina, at 4∶30 PM.on the afternoon of February l, 1960．On that day, Ezell Blair Jr．Joseph McNeil, David Richmond, and Franklin McClain entered an F．W：Woolworth store．They sat down at a segregated(隔离的)lunch counter, ordered coffee, and then refused to leave when told,“We don’t sever Negroes．”

　　The four young men had expected not to be serve．What no one had expected, however, was that they w would sit there and politely, but firmly, refuse to leave．This was 1960, and throughout the South black people were not allowed to sit at the same lunch counters with whites swim at the same beaches, use the same water fountains, or worship at the same churches．Segregation was the law, and it meant separation of the races in every way．

　　The next day, the four returned to Woolworth’s－this time accompanied by sixteen other students．Again they sat at the lunch counter and requested service．Again they were refused．And again, they declined to leave．On Wednesday, February 3, seventy students filled the Woolworth’s store．This time, the group included white students as well as black．Many brought school books and studied while they waited．By this time, their protest had become known nation wide as a“sit-in”．

　　On Thursday, there was trouble．An angry group of white teenagers began shoving(推搡)and cursing them but were quickly removed by the police．By February 10, the sit-in movement had spread to five other states．

　　By September 1961, more than 70,000 people, both black and white, had participated in sit-ins at segregated restaurants and lunch counters, kneel-ins at segregated churches, read-ins at segregated libraries, and swim-ins at segregated pools and beaches．Over 3,600 people had been arrested, and more than 100 students had been driven away．But they were getting results．On June 10, 1964, the U．S Senate passed a major civil rights bill outlawing(宣布为非法)racial discrimination in all public places．President Lyndon Johnson signed it on July 2, and it begrime law．But the highest credit still goes to the four brave students from North Carolina who first sat-in and waited it out．

阅读理解

　　You’re in a department store and you see a couple of attractive young women looking at a sweater．You listen to their conversation：

　　“I can’t believe it－a Lorenzo Bertolla!They are almost impossible to find．Isn’t it beautiful?And it’s a lot cheaper than the one Sara bought in Rome．”

　　They leave and you go over to see this incredible sweater．It’s nice and the price is right You’ve never heard of Lorenzo Bertolla, but those girls looked really stylish．They must know．So, you buy it．You never realize that those young women are employees of an advertising agency．They are actually paid to go from store to store, talking loudly about Lorenzo Bertolla clothes．

　　Every day we notice what people are wearing, driving and eating．If the person looks cool, the product seems cool, too．This is the secret of undercover marketing．Companies from Ford to Nike are starting to use it．

　　Undercover marketing is important because it reaches people that don’t pay attention to traditional advertising．This is particularly true of the MTV generation－consumers between the age of 18 and 34．it is a golden group．They have a lot of money to spend, but they don’t trust ads．

　　So advertising agencies hire。young actors to“perform”in bars and other places where young adults go．Some people might call, his practice deceptive(骗人的), but marketing executive Jonathan Ressler calls it creative．“Look at traditional advertising．Its effectiveness is decreasing．”

　　However, one might ask what exactly is“real”about of young women pretending to be enthusiastic about a sweater?Advertising executives would say ifs no less real than ad．The difference is that you know an ad is trying to persuade you to buy something．You don’t know when a conversation you overhear is just a performance．

阅读理解

　　Many banks are still not lending．They worry that they will not have enough capital to cover losses, but the situation does not allow many businesses to have the money they need to operate, and further slows a struggling economy．

　　In the United States, the government has so far provided almost 150 billion dollars to banks, mainly through buying shares．Yet this may not be enough to save some major banks．By some estimates, banks have at least one trillion dollars in losses that they have not yet reported．

　　The new administration of President Barack Obama is considering ways to save banks．

　　One possibility is to expand federal guarantees against losses on some troubled financial assets(资产)．The government has already offered guarantees to Bank of America and Citigroup．But the cost of this kind of insurance could be huge．

　　Another possibility is to create a so-called bad bank．It would take questionable securities held by other banks．The idea would be similar to the Resolution Trust Corporation set up by the government in 1989．It was formed to sell assets from failed savings and loan banks．

　　But it is difficult to put a price on trouble securities．Taxpayers would lose money if the government pays too much．And if it pays too little, banks could still fail．

　　Some people see nationalization(国有化)as the answer．That is when a government takes ownership of a private business, often with the idea of selling it back to investors later．Existing shares become worthless．

　　In the early 1990s, Sweden nationalized some banks and later sold their troubled assets, recovering some costs．But a similar effort in the United States, the world’s biggest economy, could take years．And experts warn that lending and politics do not mix．

　　Coming up with a plan to fix the banks and the financial system is now the job for Tim Geithner．The Senate confirmed his this week to replace Henry Paulson as Treasury Secretary．Tim Geithner’s last job was head of the New York Federal Reserve Bank．

　　Supporters said he is the best person to deal with the financial crisis．But one-third of the Senate, mostly Republicans, voted against him．

　　He face rebuke for his failure to pay 34,000 dollars in taxes when he worked for the International Monetary Fund(IMF)．He owed it to“careless mistakes”．As Treasury Secretary he is the nation’s chief tax collector．

阅读理解

　　Bushwick is a tough place to grow up．This part of Brooklyn, in New York City, has a lot of crime．More than half of its 100,000 residents rely on aid from the government．Only 50％ of students at Bushwick High School graduate in four years．

　　Some people might say,“We should help these poor kids who have so many challenges．”Only 50％ of students at Bushwick High School graduate in four years．

　　Some people might say,“We should help these poor kids who have so many challenges．”But Malaak Compton-Rock looks at the teens in Bushwick and says,“Go to help kids who have even bigger challenges than you do．”She believes that once young people see the power they have to make things better, they can handle their own problems more easily．So her service group, the Angel Rock Project, took 30 Bushwick kids to Soweto, in South Africa, to help poor families there．Soweto is a township outside the city of Johannesburg．The effort, called Journey for Change, aims to show that any kid can change the world．

　　“Kids in Bushwick face pressure to drop out of school or become involved in gangs and drugs．”Says Compton-Rock．“We want them to live a life of purpose and service．”

　　In Soweto, many parents have died of AIDS, a deadly disease．When that happens, a grandparent or a child must lead the family．The Bushwick volunteers helped such families．They tended vegetable gardens, cared for babies and bought groceries．

　　“The saddest thing was when we visited an orphanage(孤儿院)and I helped a little boy who had been abandoned because he had HIV, the virus that causes AIDS,”says Queen Clyde, 12．“It’s been good to be on this trip．But what’s also important is what we do when it’s finished．That’s what counts．”“I never appreciated what I had until I saw some people who had nothing,”says Sadara Lewis, 12．“It’s really changed my attitude．I want to make a difference．”

　　The trip was two weeks long．But the kids, aged 12 to 15, will spend all year speaking about their experience, fund-raising and more．

阅读理解

　　Two-legged, humanoid(类人的)robots such as Honda Motor Co．Ltd’s ASIMO would likely have an easier time climbing up stairs inside homes than a robot that moves on wheels, developers say．

　　But it will be some time before such devices make their way into people’s homes．

　　“They may look smart, but they are still quite stupid,”Shimoyama said．“I don’t think they will ever be as smart as humans．”

　　While safety is an obvious concern, robots also need to be sensitive to people’s needs．

　　Researchers at Fujitsu Frontech Ltd and Fujitsu Laboratories responsible for developing“Enon”, a guide and patrol(巡逻)robot designed for use in shopping malls and corporate facilities(公共场所), are working on this．

　　Enon, which has a humanoid upper body but no legs, is equipped with a touch screen on its chest and space in its belly to carry loads weighting up to 10 kg．

　　In guide mode, it will detect a newcomer and approach the person with a nod and a greeting：“Are you a visitor?Hello．”

　　Visitors requiring directions can point to icons(图标)displayed on Enon’s chest screen．If the restroom icon is pressed, the screen will display a map that shows the way．

　　The robot will then face and point in the direction of the restroom, although it won’t actually walk the visitor there．

　　Enon is now in use at four locations in Japan, including a shopping mall near Tokyo．The main goal is to make it more helpful for the elderly．

　　“People who work in the transportation sector often ask whether we can build a robot that will find elderly people who look lost in train stations, and ask them if they are all right,”said Toshihido Marita, director of Fujitsu Laboratories Ltd’s autonomous system laboratory．“Actually that is hard to do, very hard,”he said．

阅读理解

　　Beauty has always been regarded as something praiseworthy．Almost everyone thinks attractive people are happier and healthier, have better marriages and have more respectable jobs．Personal advisors give them better advice for finding jobs．Even judges are softer on attractive defendants．But in the executive circle, beauty can become a liability．

　　While attractiveness is a positive factor for a man on his way up the executive ladder, it is harmful to a woman．

　　Handsome male executives were considered as having more honesty than plainer men; effort and ability were thought to lead to their success．

　　Attractive female executives were considered to have less honesty than unattractive ones; their success was connected not with ability but with factors such as luck．

　　All unattractive women executives were thought to have more honesty and to be more capable than the attractive female executives．Interestingly, though, the rise of the unattractive overnight successes was connected more to personal relationships and less to ability than that of the attractive overnight successes．

　　Why are attractive women not thought to be able? An attractive woman is considered to be more feminine and an attractive man more manly than the less attractive ones．Thus, an attractive woman has an advantage in traditionally’ female jobs, but an attractive woman in a traditionally manly position appears to lack the“manly”qualities required．

　　This is true even in politics．“When the only clue is how he or she looks, people treat men and women differently,”says Anne Bowman, who recently published a study on the effects of attractiveness on political candidates．She asked 125 undergraduate students to rank two groups of photographs, one of men and one of women, ironer of attractiveness．The students were told the photographs were of candidates for political offices．They were asked to rank them again, in the order they would vote for them．

　　The results showed that attractive males completely defeated unattractive men, but the women who had ranked most attractive unchangeably received the fewest votes．

阅读理解

　　During the twentieth-century there has been a great change in the lives of women．A woman marrying at the end of the nineteenth century would probably have been in her middle twenties, and would be likely to have seven or eight children, of whom four or five lived till they were five years old．By the time the youngest was fifteen, the mother would have been in her early fifties and would expect to live a further twenty years, during which chance and health made it unusual for her to get paid work．Today women marry younger and have fewer children．Usually a woman’s youngest child will be fifteen when she is forty-five and can be expected to live another thirty-five years and is likely to take paid work until sixty．

　　This important change in women’s life has only recently begun to have its full effect on women’s economic position．Even a few years ago most girls left school and took a full-time job．However, when they married, they usually left work at once and never returned to it．Today the school-leaving age is sixteen, many girls stay at school after that age, and though women marry younger, more married women stay at work at least until shortly before their first child is born．Very many more afterwards return to full or part-time work．Such changes have led to a new relationship in marriage, with the husband accepting a greater share of the duties and satisfactions of family life．

阅读理解

　　Almost every family buys at least one copy of a newspaper every day．Some people subscribe to as many as two or three different newspapers．But why do people read newspapers?

　　Five hundred years ago, news of important happenings－battles lost and won, kings or rulers overthrown or killed－took months and even years to travel from one country to another．The news passed by word of mouth and was never accurate．Today we can read in our newspapers of important events that occur in faraway countries on the same day they happen．

　　Apart from supplying news from all over the world, newspapers give us a lot of other useful information．There are weather repets, radio, television and film guides, book reviews, stones, anra ox course, auwmments．There are a sorts of advertisements．The bigger ones are put in by large companies to bring attention to their products．They pay the newspapers thousands of dollars for the advertising space, but it is worth the money for news of their products goes into almost every home in the country．For those who produce newspapers, advertisements are also very important．Money earned from advertisements makes it possible for them to sell their newspapers at a low price and still make a profit．

　　Newspapers often have information on gardening, cookery and fashion, as well as a small but very popular section on jokes and cartoons．

阅读理解

　　Gmail turned five years old this week．It’s somewhat amazing to think we’ve only had it since 2004; Gmail changed the webmail game forever by offering features we now take for granted：a streamlined interface(界面), powerful search, pioneering use of Ajax and a then－huge 1 GB of mailbox space．“You’ll never need to delete another message”was how Google described it at the time．

　　Back then, I was still making do with Hotmail．But its clumsy interface and tiny amount of storage space made the decision to move on an easy one．Getting an account made all the difference in the world to my email experience．Suddenly I was freed from having to delete emails every few days to make space in my mailbox．And the app(application)was smooth and responsive, like a desktop client(客户端程序)－and pretty fast in comparison to Hotmail．“Conversation view”and using labels instead of folders took a little getting used to, but in all Gmail felt far more professional and made me much more productive．

　　Gmail is a favorite app of ours ever on Web Worker Daily, and with good reason．It’s still the best webmail client for web workers as it lets us access our email whenever and wherever we need to, on any device, with minimum effort．And Google hasn’t spent the five years sitting on its Gmail success, either, but has introduced improvements to the service that include Gmail Tasks, chat, video chat and voice chat, combined with Google Calendar and Docs, Google Apps for Domains, and, of course, even more storage．We’ve recently covered the many features found in Gmail Labs: a way to“undo”sent messages, using canned responses for smart auto-responders, offline support using Gears and how to customize the way you view your mailbox using multiple inboxes．