Christopher Thomas, 27, was a writer by night and a teacher by day when he noticed he was always tired and was losing weight fast. Diagnosed with diabetes (糖尿病), Thomas would need to inject himself with insulin (胰岛素) three times a day for the rest of his life or risk nerve damage, blindness and even death. And if that weren't bad enough, he had no health insurance.

After a month of feeling upset, Thomas decided he'd better find a way to fight back. He left Canton, Michigan for New York, got a job waiting tables, nicknamed himself the Diabetic Rockstar, and created diabeticrockstar.com, a free online community for diabetics and their loved ones — a place where over 1,100 people share personal stories, information, and resources.

    Jason Swencki’s son, Kody, was diagnosed with diabetes at six. Father and son visit the online children's forums(论坛) together most evenings. "Kody gets so excited, writing to kids from all over," says Swencki, one of the site's volunteers. "They know what he's going through, so he doesn't feel alone."

Kody is anything but alone: Diabetes is now the seventh leading cause of death in the United States, with 24 million diagnosed cases. And more people are being diagnosed at younger ages.

    These days, Thomas's main focus is his charity（慈善机构）, Fight It, which provides medicines and supplies to people —225 to date— who can't afford a diabetic's huge expenses. Fight-it.org has raised about $23,000 — in products and in cash. In May, Thomas will hold the first annual Diabetic Rockstar Festival in the Caribbean.

Even with a staff of 22 volunteers, Thomas often devotes up to 50 hours a week to his cause, while still doing his full-time job waiting tables. "Of the diabetes charities out there, most are putting money into finding a cure," says Bentley Gubar, one of Rockstar's original members. "But Christopher is the only person I know saying people need help now."

1. Which of the following is true of Christopher Thomas?

A. He needs to go to the doctor every day.

B. He studies the leading cause of diabetes

C. He has a positive attitude to this disease.

D. He encourages diabetics by writing articles.

2. Diabeitcrockstar.com was created for _________.

     A. diabetics to communicate                      B. volunteers to find jobs

     C. children to amuse themselves                   D. rock stars to share resources.

3.According to the text, Kody ______.

     A. feel lonely because of his illness

       B. benefits from diabeticrockstar.com

C. helps create the online kid’s forums

D. writes children’s stories online

4.What can we learn about Fight It?

A. It helps the diabetics in financial difficulties. 

B. It organizes parties for volunteer once  a year.

C. It offers less expensive medicine to diabetics. 

D. It owns a well-known medical website.

5.The last paragraph suggests that Thomas ______.

A. works full-time in a diabetes charity         

B. employs 22 people for his website

C. helps diabetics in his own way              

D. ties to find a cure for diabetes

 

Earthquakes strike suddenly at any time of the day or night, but there’s no way to tell them. If an earthquake happens, it may 11.____ many deaths and injuries and great damage. Decide how and where your family will get together if 12.____ . Choose an out-of-state friend or relative that the family members can 13.____ after the quake to report where they are and how they are. Know the 14.____ places in each room: under the 15.____ tables, desks, or against inside walls. Keep enough food, water and other things, 16.____ a flashlight, a radio medicines and clothing.

    During the earthquake, you should 17.____ a clear head and never be too nervous to know what to do. Protect your 18._ ___ and neck with your arms. If possible, take a book, a pillow or any other things to 19.____ yourself from falling glass and ruins. If you are 20.____, you must immediately lie under any strong furniture. If outdoors, move to an open area away form tress, buildings, walls and power poles. If you are in a narrow valley, move to the center of it and look up for falling 21.____. If you are in a car, move to the side of the road and stop the car. Do not stop near buildings, power lines or on or under bridges. Stay in your car until the shaking stops.

    Do not move a badly 22.____ person unless he is in great danger after the earthquake. Do not use the telephone 23.____ unless there is a serious injury or fire. Turn on your radio for instructions and news reports. Be prepared for aftershocks. If you want to 24.____ your home, post a message inside your home 25.____ family members where you can be found.

1.A. affect      B. develop      C. cause     D. bury

2.A. recover     B. separated    C. lost         D. divided

3.A. call         B. recognize    C. go         D. help

4.A. loose       B. safe         C. dangerous   D. wide

5.A. old        B. new          C. strong      D. weak

6.A. ignoring    B. holding       C. including    D. carrying

7.A. make       B. protect       C. use         D. keep

8.A. hand        B. head         C. leg         D. back

9. A. let          B. prevent       C. stop        D. protect

10.A. indoors      B. outdoors       C. away      D. out

11. A. bricks       B. flowers        C. stones     D. walls

12. A. wounded     B. injured        C. harmed    D. hurt

13. A. slowly       B. extremely      C. actually    D. immediately

14.A. reach        B. leave         C. take        D. pack

15.A. telling       B. speaking      C. saying       D. talking

 

Hair loss can be an emotionally troubling experience for some women. Luckily, experts do have suggestions on how to treat and prevent this condition.

According to Dr. Robert Jones of the Hair Transplant Center in Oakville, ON, hair loss in women is largely genetically determined—he estimates that nearly 80 to 90 percent of hair loss in both men and women is due to a family history of the condition. But some women can experience hair loss as the result of a thyroid dysfunction, pregnancy hormones or because of side effects of medicines such as antidepressants and birth control pills. Nick Dimakos, founder of SureThik International in Toronto, agrees stress and lower-than-normal levels of estrogen (雌性激素) are other contributing factors to hair loss in females. Low levels of iron and over-use of chemical hair products such as artificial dyes (染料) can also lead to thinning hair, which can be especially difficult for women, for whom hair loss is much less socially acceptable than it is for men. “Women lose about 25 percent of their hair before even noticing there’s a problem,” Dimakos says. “It can be devastating (毁灭性的) for them.”

There is no surefire (一定成功的) way to prevent hair loss, but there are steps you can take to reduce the amount of hair you lose. Dimakos recommends visiting your doctor because early discovery and treatment can prevent unnecessary hair loss. He also recommends using mild hair products, avoiding hair dyes or extensions, avoiding smoking and taking vitamin B12 if you suspect hair loss may be in your future. Wearing hair in a ponytail (马尾辫) or braid (辫子) regularly can also lead to weakened hair that is likely to fall out, so it may be best to avoid wearing these styles too often.

Of course, if your hair begins to lose, you’d better seek treatment.

? Hair transplants

Very few women turn to hair transplants because unlike men, women suffering from hair loss usually have thinning hair all over their heads rather than only in one area. If there is not enough hair somewhere else on the head that can be taken to fill in the gaps, a transplant cannot be performed.

? Minoxidil

Found in Rogaine, an over-the-counter (OTC) product, this is a medicine that lowers blood pressure. But it can also slow down or stop hair loss, says Dimakos. This option may work for some women, but it is important to consult your physician before taking any type of medication.

The truth about hair loss in women
What (71)     hair loss?	(72)      factor	A large (73)      of hair loss is due to a family history of the condition.
Health condition and stress	A thyroid dysfunction, stress, pregnancy hormones and low levels of estrogen and iron all lead to hair loss.
Side effects of medicines	Some medicines lead to hair loss.
Chemical hair products	Over-use of such products may cause hair to (74)     .
Women’s ignorance	About 25 percent of their hair is lost before women (75)      there is a problem.
How can you prevent hair loss?	Visit the doctor.	Doctors may help you (76)      it early and treat hair loss in time.
Adopt a healthy (77)     .	Avoid smoking and take vitamin B12. Avoid hair dyes or extensions.
Wear your hair properly.	Avoid wearing hair in a ponytail or braid (78)     .
How can you (79)      hair loss?	Hair transplants	A transplant can be performed if there is enough hair somewhere else on the head that can be taken to fill in the gaps.
Minoxidil	The medicine can slow down or stop hair loss if (80)      properly.

 

For most people, shopping is still a matter of wandering down the street or loading a cart in a shopping mall. Soon, that will change. Electronic commerce is growing fast and will soon bring people more choices. There will, however, be a cost: protecting the consumer from fraud will be harder. Many governments therefore want to extend high street regulations to the electronic world. But politicians would be wiser to see cyberspace as a basis for a new era of corporate self-regulation.

　　Consumers in rich countries have grown used to the idea that the government takes responsibility for everything from the stability of the banks to the safety of the drugs, or their rights to refund when goods are faulty. But governments cannot enforce national laws on businesses whose only presence in their country is on the screen. Other countries have regulators, but the rules of consumer protection differ, as does enforcement. Even where a clear right to compensation exists, the online catalogue customer in Tokyo, say, can hardly go to New York to extract a refund for a dud purchase.

　　One answer is for governments to cooperate more: to recognize each other’s rules. But that requires years of work and volumes of detailed rules. And plenty of countries have rules too fanciful for sober states to accept. There is, however, an alternative. Let the electronic businesses do the “regulation” themselves. They do, after all, have a self-interest in doing so.

　　In electronic commerce, a reputation for honest dealing will be a valuable competitive asset. Governments, too, may compete to be trusted. For instance, customers ordering medicines online may prefer to buy from the United States because they trust the rigorous screening of the Food and Drug Administration; or they may decide that the FDA’s rules are too strict, and buy from Switzerland instead.

Consumers will need to use their judgment. But precisely because the technology is new, electronic shoppers are likely for a while to be a lot more cautious than consumers of the normal sort---and the new technology will also make it easier for them to complain noisily when a company lets them down. In this way, at least, the advent of cyberspace may argue for fewer consumer protection laws, not more.

1.According to the author, what will be the best policy for electronic commerce?

         A．Self – regulation by the business.      B．Strict consumer protection laws.

         C．Close international cooperation.       D．Government protection.

2.In case an electronic shopper bought faulty goods from a foreign country, what could he do?

         A．Refuse to pay for the purchase.        B．Go to the seller and ask for a refund.

         C．Appeal to consumer protection law.          D．Complain about it on the Internet.

3.In the author’s view, businesses would place a high emphasis on honest dealing because in the electronic world         .

         A．international cooperation would be much more frequent

         B．consumers could easily seek government protection

         C．a good reputation is a great advantage in competition

         D．it would be easy for consumers to complain

4.We can infer from the passage that in licensing new drugs the FDA in the United States is    .

         A．very quick  B．very cautious     C．very slow   D．rather careless

5.If a customer buys something that does not meet his expectation, what is the advantage of dealing through electronic commerce over the present normal one?

         A．It will be easier for him to return the goods he is not satisfied with.

         B．It will be easier for him to attain the refund from the seller.

C．It will be easier for him to get his complaints heard by other consumers.

D．It will be easier for him to complain about this to the government.

 

Directions: Read the following text and choose the most suitable heading from A-F for each paragraph．There is one extra heading which you do not need.

A．Causes of overusing fluoride	B．Negative effects of fluoride
C．Safe use of fluoride	D．The expert’s background information
E．No need to worry about fluoride poisoning
F．Solutions to improper use of fluoride

I have heard that fluoride can help stop dental decay, but I recently read that it is poisonous．Which of these is true? How can children use fluoride safely?

1.

This question is answered by Dr Marcia M．Rich who practises general dentistry in Newholt．She is also a lecturer at the University and a writer for the monthly magazine Your Dentist Cares．

2.

My answer to the first question is to stress that fluoride works well and is safe when users follow instructions．Young children have a tendency to swallow toothpaste, which is why they should only have a tiny amount of fluoride toothpaste on their toothbrush．If this simple measure is taken, parents can be confident that children will be protected against tooth decay, and come to no harm.

3.

Almost all medicines have an adverse effect－or even be deadly－if they are not taken as directed．So you are right－fluoride can be poisonous if it is swallowed in very large quantities．It is for the reason that fluoride supplements can only be obtained on prescription from the doctor or dentist．Please be assured that fluoride overdoses are rare－in fact, I have never heard of any fatal incidents related to fluoride poisoning.

4.

Scientific studies have shown that fluoride can help to prevent cavities as long as it is used correctly．If fluoride is abused, there is a risk of illness or even deaths in extreme cases．If a deadly amount of fluoride is taken, immediate first-aid could save a life．A person who has swallowed a large amount of fluoride will probably start vomiting．If not, the patient should be given milk or antacid and taken to the nearest hospital for emergency treatment.

5.

Taking too much fluoride while teeth are growing can lead to a condition called dental fluorosis．The most likely cause is the swallowing of fluoride toothpastes by young children．It can also be caused by inappropriate use of fluoride drop or other fluoride supplements, for example when fluoride is already is already present in drinking water．