When Mary Moore began her high school in 1951, her mother told her,"Be sure and take a typing course so when this show business thing doesn't work out, you'll have something to rely on．"Mary responded in typical teenage fashion．From that moment on, "the very last thing I ever thought about doing was taking a typing course,"she recalls．
The show business thing worked out, of course．In her career, Mary won many awards．Only recently, when she began to write Growing Up Again, did she regret ignoring her morn," I don't know how to use a computer," she admits．
Unlike her 1995 autobiography, After All, her second book is less about life as an
award-winning actress and more about living with diabetes(糖尿病)．All the money from the book is intended for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation(JDRF), an organization she serves as international chairman．"I felt there was a need for a book like this," she says．"I didn't want to lecture, but I wanted other diabetics to know that things get better when we're self-controlled and do our part in managing the disease．"
But she hasn't always practiced what she teaches．In her book, she describes that awful day, almost 40 years ago, when she received two pieces of life-changing news．First, she had lost the baby she was carrying, and second, tests showed that she had diabetes．In a childlike act, she left the hospital and treated herself to a box of doughnuts(甜甜圈)．Years would pass before she realized she had to grow up-again-and take control of her diabetes, not let it control her．Only then did she kick her three-pack-a-day cigarette habit, overcome her addiction to alcohol, and begin to follow a balanced diet．
Although her disease has affected her eyesight and forced her to the sidelines of the dance floor, she refuses to fall into self-pity．"Everybody on earth can ask, 'why me?' about something or other," she insists．"It doesn't do any good．No one is immune(免疫的)to heartache, pain, and disappointments．Sometimes we can make things better by helping others．I've come to realize the importance of that as I've grown up this second time．I want to speak out and be as helpful as I can be．"
(1)
Why did Mary feel regretful?
[ ]
A．
She didn't achieve her ambition．
B．
She didn't take care of her mother．
C．
She didn't complete her high school．
D．
She didn't follow her mother's advice．
(2)
We can know that before 1995 Mary ________．
[ ]
A．
had two books published
B．
received many career awards
C．
knew how to use a computer
D．
supported the JDRF by writing
(3)
Mary's second book Growing Up Again is mainly about her ________
[ ]
A．
living with diabetes
B．
successful show business
C．
service for an organization
D．
remembrance of her mother
(4)
When Mary received the life-changing news, she ________．
She took up skating at age 85, made her first movie appearance at age 114, and held a concert in the neighborhood on her 121st birthday．
Whe n it comes to long life, Jeanne Calment is the world’s recordholder．She lived to the ripe old age of 122．So is 122 the upper limit to the human life span(寿命)?If scientists come up with some sort of pill or diet that would slow aging, could we possibly make it to 150－or beyond?
Researchers don’t entirely agree on the answers．“Calment lived to 122, so it wouldn’t surprise me if someone alive today reaches 130 or 135,”says Jerry Shay at the University of Texas．
Steve Austad at the University of Texas agrees．“People can live much longer than we think,”he says．“Experts used to say that humans couldn’t live past 110．When Calment blew past that age, they raised the number to 120．So why can’t we go higher?”
The trouble with guessing how old people can live to be is that it’s all just guessing．“Anyone can make up a number,”says Rich Miller at the University of Michigan．“Usually the scientist who picks the highest number gets his name in Time magazine．”
Won’t new anti-aging techniques keep us alive for centuries?Any cure, says Miller, for aging would probably keep most of us kicking until about 120．Researchers are working on treatments that lengthen the life span of mice by 50 percent at most．So, if the average human life span is about 80 years, says Miller,“adding another 50 percent would get you to 120．”
So what can we conclude from this little disagreement among the researchers?That life span is flexible(有弹性的)，but there is a limit, says George Martin of the University of Washington．“We can get flies to live 50 percent longer,”he says．“But a fly’s never going to live 150 years．”
“Of course, if you became a new species(物种)，one that ages at a slower speed, that would be a different story,”he adds．
Does Martin really believe that humans could evolve(进化)their way to longer life?“It’s pretty cool to think about it,”he says with a smile．
(1)
What does the story of Jeanne Calment prove to us?
[ ]
A．
People can live to 122．
B．
Old people are creative．
C．
Women are sporty at 85．
D．
Women live longer than men．
(2)
According to Steve Austad at the University of Texas, ________．
[ ]
A．
the average human life span could be 110
B．
scientists cannot find ways to slow aging
C．
few people can expect to live to over 150
D．
researchers are not sure how long people can live
(3)
Who would agree that a scientist will become famous if he makes the wildest guess at longevity?
[ ]
A．
Jerry Shay．
B．
Steve Austad
C．
Rich Miller
D．
George Martin
(4)
What can we infer from the last three paragraphs?
[ ]
A．
Most of us could be good at sports even at 120．
B．
The average human life span cannot be doubled．
C．
Scientists believe mice are aging at a slower speed than before．
D．
New techniques could be used to change flies into a new species．
