Lights Out at Bedtime

There are plenty of good reasons to power up a personal desktop or laptop computer in the evening — writing e-mails, chatting on social networks or making purchases over the Internet, for instance. But various studies indicate that people who stare at a PC’s bright monitor shortly before going to bed probably sleep less soundly than they would otherwise because the light seriously affects their natural wake-sleep cycle."They haven't proved it though," says Dieter Kunz, the team's director at Charite's Psychiatric Clinic in St. Hedwig's Hospital in Berlin.

Similarly, exposure to just 10 minutes of normal bathroom lighting is enough to free the sleep hormone melatonin, which regulates people's natural wake-sleep cycle and makes them sleepy at nightfall.

Ten years ago, a team of British and American researchers detected a photo-pigment(光敏色素) in the human eye that signals to the body whether it is day or night, summer or winter. The photo-pigment is especially sensitive to blue light.

"The blue light more or less tells the body, It's daytime, be awake,'" Kunz says. Monitors have a mostly cold white light content and scientists suspect the photo-pigment may react similarly to it. So the longer people look into the bright light, the more awake they become - and then sleep poorly.

A lot of people have difficulty "switching off" in the evening. About half of the women in Germany and a quarter of the men sleep poorly.

Environmental factors are only one of the possible causes. Job stress as well as personal and health concerns are also the main reasons for their sleep problems.

In addition, electronic objects' standby lights and indicator lamps can be annoying in the dark and affect sleep."Sound scientific evidence is still lacking on this matter," Kunz notes.

According to Kunz, those who cannot go without their computer in the evening should turn down the blue content if possible and lower the brightness somewhat."But nobody does that because, after all, you want to concentrate while working at the computer and the light helps the brain."

1.The passage is mainly about ____________.

A. natural wake-up cycles

B. the effect of light on sleep

C. personal and health concerns

D. functions of computer monitors

2.The underlined word “which” in Paragraph 2 refers to_____.

A. normal bathroom lighting

B. 10-minute exposure to lighting

C. the release process of a chemical

D. a chemical affecting one’s sleep cycle

3.We can learn from the passage that ______.

A. the blue light has a calming effect.

B. the photo-pigment tells people day or night

C. women in Germany use computers more often than men

D. it has been proved that standby lights affect people’s sleep

On the coast of Brazil lies its most famous city Rio de Janeiro. Rio is a beautiful place to visit. It is full of exciting parades, historical architecture and natural beauty.

The most famous time of year in Rio is the spring when the samba schools organize a giant parade of dance, music and costumes. Samba is a type of fast Brazilian music, which is perfect for dancing. The carnival lasts two days and over 20 samba schools perform, a total of 70,000 people in brightly coloured costumes, all dancing and singing! It is a magnificent spectacle and millions of people watch the carnival on television around the world.

Rio de Janeiro is a religious city and it is full of churches. Some, like the former Imperial Church, were built over 400 years ago while others, like the Metropolitan Cathedral, are very modern. The Metropolitan Cathedral was built in 1976 and is so large that 20,000 people can stand inside at one time!

Another important religious site in Rio is the Corcovado hill. On the top of the hill, along with a small church, stands a 30-metre high statue of Jesus with his arms stretched out. From this point you can see every part of the city.

1. Brazilian carnival is_________.

A. a type of Brazilian music

B. a parade of 70,000 people dancing and singing

C. a parade of millions of people on television

D. the name of a samba school

2.The Metropolitan Cathedral___________.

A. was built 400 years ago B. is on Corcovado Hill

C. is a religious city D. was built in 1976

3.The Corcovado Hill is famous for__________.

A. the samba parade

B. the beautiful view of the city

C. the statue of Jesus

D. the small church

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1. If you are an English beginner, you’d better choose________.

A. General English B. High School ESL

C. Night Classes D. Academic English

2.Which course would be helpful for students who want to take the IELTS exam?

A. Course 1. B. Course 2.

C. Course 3. D. Course 4.

3.How much will you pay if you spend two weeks taking the High School ESL course?

A.$ 200. B.$ 300. C.$ 500. D.$ 600.

4.What can we learn from One on One according to the passage?

A. Its lessons are given in the morning.

B. It’s especially designed for English beginners.

C. It’s more expensive than the other courses.

D. Its lessons are designed to only improve writing skills.

5.If you are only free in the morning, you may choose________.

A. Course 1 or Course 5 B. Course 3 or Course 4

C. Course 2 or Course 4 D. Course 1 or Course 3

完形填空

阅读下面短文,从短文后所给各题的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中,选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项,并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。

I am anything but adventurous. So, when I actually ____ the courage to learn driving and, even more ____, passed the test, I fancied being a free spirit at last.

I mistakenly thought I would ____new roads and drive to the farthest horizons. But, trying new highways was next to ____ for me. The time I tried, I got hopelessly ____ and found myself going around in circles. When I eventually found the way home, I ____ this was the end of the adventurous life. I _____ the known routes. When a friend ____ me to make the most of weekend when the traffic was ____ to make new discoveries, I ___ at her with horror. Was I going to ____ a perfectly good weekend raising my blood pressure or was I going to spend it doing as little as possible? _____, I chose the latter option.

After some years of battling the Sharjah-Dubai ___ , I told myself it wasn’t worth ____ my peace of mind. Now I had the Metro, buses and ____ to choose from. Taking taxi was one of the best ____ I have made from a traffic point of view. There was an unbelievable sense of lightness _____ I jumped into a taxi, taken to my destination without being worried.

All one has to do is give directions. I am good at that. Giving directions, I mean. And I am very __ ___ when I issue these, with no effect on the part of the person driving. As soon as I sit inside, I start the description of the _____ to be taken in great detail so as to _____ the possibility of being taken for a ride.

1.A.covered B.delivered C.gathering D.removing

2.A.enthusiastically B.surprisingly C.importantly D.typically

3.A.discover B.get C.invent D.purchase

4.A.invisible B.useful C.practical D.impossible

5.A.lost B.amazed C.puzzled D.moved

6.A.refused B.hoped C.replied D. swore

7.A.added to B.stuck to C.got to D.referred to

8.A.suggested B.ordered C.advised D.persuaded

9.A.light B.heavy C.slow D.safe

10.A.glared B.stared C.glanced D.viewed

11.A.use B.spare C.waste D.devote

12.A.Of course B.In short C.In case D.Of all

13.A.system B.atmosphere C.society D.traffic

14.A.weighing B.disturbing C.conducting D. carrying

15.A.cars B.trains C.trucks D.cabs

16.A.dreams B.discoveries C.choices D.challenges

17.A.while B.when C.until D.before

18.A.considerate B.ignorant C.stubborn D.accurate

19.A.route B.map C.design D. course

20.A.increase B.extend C.reduce D.Expand

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