Jeri Solomon is a morning person but Jim, her husband of 11 years, is not. Early in their life, it caused a problem. “When we were planning our wedding, I wanted to have these big discussions at 8 a. m.,when I had been up for two hours and was fresh, but Jim would just be getting out of bed,” says the 46-year-old designer from Melrose, Mass. “We ended up getting into many arguments because I thought he had no interest, when really he was just still half-asleep.”

The couple learned to work around their differences over the years, but their situation isn’t uncommon, says Katherine Sharkey, professor at BrownUniversity. “More women tend to be larks, while men are like night owls(猫头鹰),” she says.

The question is:Why? The answer lies in each person’s body clock. “The body clock is about 24 hours, thanks to Earth’s 24-hour light-dark cycle,” Sharkey says. “But some people have a longer natural cycle, and some are shorter.” If yours is on the long side, you’re more likely to be a night owl. If it runs short, you’re probably an early riser. But your body clock can change over your lifetime. There’s a developmental piece-school-age children are generally early birds, while teenagers tend to be night owls, and then as they age, adults gradually turn back into morning people,” Sharkey says.

Besides the clear problems with being a night owl if you have fl day job, “night owls tend to be more low-spirited, and have a higher dependence on coffee,” Sharkey says. But the news isn’t all bad. A recent study in Belgium found that night owls can stay more focused as the day goes on, compared with early risers.

Morning people, however, also have advantages. “Larks generally sleep better, have more regular sleep, and have more flexible characters,” Sharkey says. They also tend to be happier and feel healthier than night owls, according to a recent study from the University of Toronto.

1.Jeri Solomon and her husband ______.

A.tried to change each other’s sleeping habits

B.often argued about small things

C.could not understand each other

D.got up at different times

2.The underlined word “larks” in Paragraph 2 refers to birds which ______.

A.are sleepy at noon

B.stay awake all night

C.search for food at night

D.are active in the morning

3.Compared with morning people, night owls ______.

A.work more flexibly

B.feel happy more easily

C.sleep more soundly at night

D.get more and more focused during the day

4.What is the purpose of the text?

A.To explain why we get up early or late.

B.To advise every one of us to get up early.

C.To tell us how to change our body clock.

D.To point out morning people’s advantages.

Military training has long been considered a ritual(仪式) that freshmen must go through in order to officially start their college lives. While some question the necessity of such training. Many students see military training as a campus tradition that should be maintained.

Early in February, the Ministry of Education issued a new regulation that colleges and universities should carry out a minimum of 14 days compulsory military training for freshmen.

In a report by Beijing Evening News, Hou Zhengfang, a Beijing-based education PhD, questioned the benefits of military training. “The training routine does little to improve students’ physical fitness over only two weeks’ time. Maybe some disaster prevention training, such as earthquake survival or escaping from fires would be of greater benefit.”

Meng Yang, a 19-year-old freshman at Guangxi University, fainted during training. She said that many students, especially girls, are willing to train under direct sunshine. “For me, military training is physically challenging and even damages my health.”

According to Li Jian from the student affairs office of Guangzhou University, feeling dizzy happens frequently during military training and the school has received a lot of complaints from both students and parents: “But I still think military training is a good thing. Students are easier to manage after the military training. They became more positive about their new environment after the training.”

Although autumn is fast approaching Beijing, the noon heat burns 3300 freshmen on Tsinghua University’s campus. Chu Jinjing, a freshman majoring in medicine, did feel some discomfort while training in sweaty clothes in the glaring heat, the 18-year-old still enjoyed being part of group going through strict exercises. “By going through this tough training, students bond faster and a sense of belonging to the school can be formed. I’ve made a lot of friends already.”

According to the Ministry of Education, the purpose of military training is to teach students discipline, the spirit of teamwork and endurance. But in reality, according to Xiong Bingqi, deputy director of the 21st Century Education Research Institute, the effect is not satisfying. “Such goals require long-term development. It is unrealistic to expect military training to make a difference in only 14 days.” He thus suggests that it should be up to schools to conduct military training in a way that best suits their students.

However, Wang Wenhui, an 18-year-old freshman from Xi’an Jiaotong University, sees military training as a tradition that reaches beyond character building. “From junior and senior high school to college, we join military training to start a new journey. I would feel a bit incomplete without it.”

1.How many people expressing their opinions are mentioned in this passage?

A.4 B.5 C.6 D.7

2.According to Hou Zhengfang, it seems much more beneficial to give freshmen_____________.

A.survival skills

B.military training

C.the spirit of teamwork and endurance

D.strict exercises

3.What is the author’s attitude towards military training?

A.Supportive B.Subjective

C.Objective D.Rejective

4.What is the best title for the passage?

A.A Policy Made by the Ministry of Education

B.Military Training under Fire

C.A New Journey

D.A Best Way to Teach Students Discipline

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