We redheads are well known for our bad tempers. Now it seems there is scientific backing for our particular complaining as well.

Scientists in the United States studied a group of 144 dental patients almost half of whom had red hair. They found that the red-haired group were more sensitive to pain and as a result were twice as likely to avoid visiting the dentist.

Previous research had shown that redheads were more resistant to the effects of local anaesthesia(局部麻醉) than people with other hair colours.

The scientists say that this red-haired sensitivity to pain stems from the actions of a gene called MC1R. This is responsible for the production of melanin which gives skin and hair its colour. In about five percent of white people the gene is mutated(突变) leading to fair skin and red hair.

Researchers say there are some people with the gene in the brain and that this could affect pain sensitivity.

Professor Daniel Sessler from the Cleveland Clinic in the United States is one of the authors of the study. He says the research is a considerable scientific breakthrough.

"Red hair is the first phenotype(表现某一显性特征之生物个体或群体) of anaesthetic requirement in humans. And what I mean by phenotype is an external(外部的) characteristiC.

"So suppuse you are walking down the street and you see someone who's a little older and a little younger - that tells you nothing about their anaesthetic requirement. You see a man and a woman - that tells you nothing about their anaesthetic requirement. But you see a redhead - aha! You know that person is going to require 20 percent more general anaesthesia."

From my own personal experience I would say that there is some merit to this ideA.I have found that I have had to ask dentists for extra anaesthetic in the middle of procedures.

Some dentists argue that a greater sensitivity to pain might actually benefit redheads and drive them to see the dentist more quickly. In my own case I can prove that is definitely not true.

We learn from the text that red- haired group are _______________.

A.easily influenced by the sense of pain and need more anthaethetic reqiurement

B.usually more sensitive to some painful things

C.just well-known for their good temper and strong pain sensitivity

D.good-looking with fair skin and red hair

What do the scientists think this red-haired sensitivity to pain results from?

A.melanin which is responsible for the production which gives skin and hair its colour.

B.the mutated gene leading to fair skin and red hair基因

C.some persons with this gene in the brain

D.an external characteristic of a person.

According to Professor Daniel Sessler, the most amazing thing about the anaesthetic requirement in humans which can be judged by ______.

A.someone’s age and hair  

B.someome’s gender and figure

C.someone’s teeth and the skills of the dentist

D.someone’s external charateristic

We can infer from the last two paragraphs that _____.

A.redheads need less anaesthetic in the operation

B.the results of this red-haired sensitivity to pain will be the same

C.the writer is a red-haired person

D.redheads have many benefits of being red-haired

If you are human, you can’t help but experience times when everything seems to be going wrong. You must also _ ▲__as if your life is completely out of control at times. It is during those “down times” that words of encouragement from family, friends, co-workers or_ ▲___strangers can boost(增强)your spirits. It is also during those _ ▲__that negative words can be devastating (毁灭性的) and sink you deeper and deeper into depression.

   For example, consider this story about a group of _39__who were traveling through the woods when _ ▲__of them fell into a deep pit(坑). All of the other frogs gathered around the _ ▲__.When they saw how _ ▲__the pit was, they told the two _ ▲__frogs they would never get out.

   The two frogs didn’t obey what other frogs said and tried to _ ▲__ out of the pit. The other frogs kept telling them not to jump, _ ▲__it was in vain. Finally, one of the frogs followed what the other frogs were saying and simply _ ▲__. He fell down and _ ▲__ The other frog continued to jump as _ ▲__as he could. Once again the crowd of frogs shouted at him to _ ▲__the pain. The more they _ ▲__, the harder he jumped and finally he _ ▲__to safety.

   When he _ ▲__, the other frogs asked him why he continued to jump when they were all _ ▲__him to simply quit. The frog _ ▲__to them that he was a little bit deaf. He thought they were _ ▲__him all the time.

1. A. think                 B. experience        C. seem               D. feel

2. A. so                    B. just           C. even          D. ever

3. A. processes          B. times         C. courses           D. practices

4. A. frogs                B. mice                 C. dogs         D. cats

5. A. two                  B. three          c.many                D. few   

6. A. hole              B. pit                    C. water            D. well

7. A. muddy            B. wide                 C. deep               D. long

8. A. uncomfortable B. unpleasant  C. unhappy      D. unfortunate

9. A. run                  B. walk          C. climb         D. jump

10. A. so                  B. as long as   C. because           D. although

11. A. gave out          B. gave up            C. gave away       D. gave off

12. A. died                B. wounded           C. destroyed   D. damaged

13. A. fast                B. hard                  C. easily         D. swiftly

14. A. help                B. ban                   C. forbid     D. stop

15. A. cried                     B. spoke               C. shouted            D. read

16. A. get it               B. forget it     C. use it         D. made it

17. A. turned out     B. kept out     C. got out             D. held out

18. A. taking to        B. shouting at        C. throwing at  D. speaking to    

19. A. explained       B. announced       C. introduced   D. told

20. A. encouraging  B. helping      C. pulling      D dragging

Steve, a twelve¬-year¬-old boy with alcoholic parents, was failing. Surprisingly, he could read,

 yet,   ____   his reading skills, Steve had been failing since the first grade. Steve was a

 big boy, yet, he went unnoticed… ____    Miss White.

Miss White was a smiling, beautiful, young lady. For the first time in his    ____   life, Steve couldn't take his eyes off his teacher;  yet,    ____   he failed. In the middle of the first term, the entire seventh grade was    ____   for basic skills. Steve hurried through his tests, and   ____   to dream of other things, as the day passed slowly. One day, Miss White's ____    voice broke into his daydreams. “Steve!” Startled (吓了一跳), he   ____   to look at her. “Pay attention!” She began to  ____   the test results. “You all did pretty well,” she told the class, “   ____    one boy, and it breaks my    ____   to tell you this, but…” She hesitated, pinning Steve to his seat with a sharp   ____.“…The smartest boy in the seventh grade is failing my class!”

After that, Steve still   ____   do his homework. “Just try it,” Miss White said one day. “Steve!

Please! I care about you!” Wow! Suddenly, Steve got it! Someone cared about him? Someone, so beautiful and perfect, cared about him! Steve went home from school,    ____    that afternoon. The following Monday he arrived at school on time, and waited for Miss White to enter the classroom. She walked in, all sparkle and smiles! Immediately, she gave a   ____   on the weekend homework. Steve was the first to  ____   his paper. With a look of   ____, Miss White took his paper. Steve walked back to his desk, his heart beating strongly within his chest. Miss White's face was in total   ____   ! Suddenly, her face broke into a bright smile. The smartest boy in the seventh grade had just   ____    his first test! From that moment  ____   was the same for Steve.

1.A. in honor of       B.in spite of      C.in addition to     D.in case of

2.A. to              B.before         C.until            D.upon

3.A .rich             B.young         C.fresh            D.simple

4.A. still             B.even          C.also             D.forever

5.A. observed         B.corrected      C.selected          D.tested

6.A. struggled        B.agreed         C.continued         D.declared

7.A. cheerful         B.impatient       C.enthusiastic       D.shy

8.A. decided          B.managed       C.turned           D.forgot

9.A. go over          B.run over       C.turn over         D.hand over

10.A. except for      B.due to         C.as for            D.up to

11.A. will            B.record         C.heart             D.back

12.A. pain            B.stare          C.sense            D.contrast

13.A. wouldn't        B.couldn't        C.mustn't           D.shouldn't

14.A. embarrassed     B.discouraged     C.approved         D.thoughtful

15.A. survey          B.speech         C.report            D.quiz

16.A. give up         B.hand in         C.turn down         D.come across

17.A. respect          B.curiosity        C.surprise          D.fear

18.A. victory          B.shock          C.sadness           D. confidence

19.A. escaped         B.taken           C.missed           D.passed

20.A. nothing         B.something       C.anything          D.everything

 

The possibility that pleasant smells might reduce pain has recently been suggested by new research. In a scientific study, doctors asked 20 men and 20 women to keep their hands in very hot water for as long as possible while breathing in different smells.

As people believe that strong smells can affect the senses, volunteers were asked not to eat or drink for eight hours before the experiment began. During the experiment, volunteers were asked to take in pleasant smells such as vanilla (香草), and unpleasant smells such as durians (榴莲). The volunteers kept their hands in the water until it became too hot for them. When they could not bear the pain any more, they took their hands out of the water.

Scientists are interested in whether the senses or smell is related to pain and whether men and women have the same senses. Now, the study has proved that for women, pleasant smells reduce pain. For men, there is no change.

Dr Finkelstein has been studying smells since 1999. He says that scientists already have data from 40 volunteers. He adds that this year, scientists will test another 60 volunteers and will be in a better position to explain the results.

One explanation is that women’s sense of smell developed long ago, and is linked to recognizing the smell of babies. Scientists used to believe that mothers recognized their children by sight only. Now, they have started to believe that the sense of smell also helps, but why pleasant smells do not reduce pain in men is a question still to be answered by scientists.

1.Before the experiment, volunteers ______.

A.are gathered and take a training

B.cannot eat or drink for several hours

C.must wash their hands carefully

D.will be interviewed by Dr Finkelstein

2.If both men and women are asked to keep their hands in hot water while taking in some pleasant smells, ______.

A.women may stand the pain of the hot water longer

B.men may keep their hands in the hot water longer

C.they will probably take their hands out at the same time

D.we are not quite sure who will take their hands out earlier

3.From the passage we learn that _________.

A.the reason why women are sensitive to smells is clear

B.the experiment for the sense of smell has come to an end

C.unpleasant smells affect men’s senses more than women’s

D.scientists have not totally explained the result of the study

4.Now scientists believe that _______.

A.mothers recognize their children only by sight

B.men’s sense of smell developed a long time ago

C.strong smells have a great influence on people’s senses

D.smells are helpful for mothers to spot their children

5.The writer wrote the passage in order to ________.

A.supply some entertainment to us

B.show women’s sharper senses than men’s

C.inform the readers of some knowledge

D.call for volunteers for the experiment

 

 

A.  Weather is to blame

B.  Divided opinions

C.  Inheriting(遗传) characteristics

D.  Home of the redheads

E.  Greater sensitivity to pain

F.  Gene mutation(基因变异)

 

1.

Britain may be the most red-headed country in the world. About 1 to 2 percent of the world’s population has red hair, but in the UK the numbers are much higher, with 13 percent of Scots, 10 percent of the Irish, and 6 percent of people in England having red hair, according to the BBC.

2. 

Scientists have tried to explain why some people have red hair for some time and now they may have found an answer: the dull weather in Britain. The human body needs vitamin D from sunshine, but unfortunately people living in Britain do not have enough of it because of its maritime climate. In fact, Britain gets even more cloud than countries in the far north of Europe. In Sweden, for example, the average daily hours of sunshine is 5.4 . In Scotland it is only 3.1 hours.

3.

To deal with this, the DNA of people living in these areas has changed slightly; scientists call this a mutation. Originally, the coloring on our body is a mixture of two kinds of melanin – black melanin is suppressed while only red / yellow melanin is made. The result is red hair, light skin color, freckles and a greater sensitivity to sunlight.

4.

However, what’ s more interesting is that the redhead DNA mutation is recessive, which means it is hidden and can often skip generations without showing. At least 1.6 million Scots carry a redhead gene mutation, and most are unaware that they do. This is why a person who does not have red hair can still produce red-haired children if he or she is a carrier of this special DNA.

5.

The research on red hair, like many areas of science, is contradictory(不一致). In 2002 researchers showed that redheads are more sensitive to pain, and need more anesthetic during surgery than people with blonde or dark hair. However, in 2005 scientists found that a MCRIR mutation gives redheads a higher tolerance for pain. Research into these aspects of red hair genetics continues. Redheads should though be more careful about their exposure to sunlight as they are at an increased risk of contracting skin cancer. If you are a redhead, the advice is not to stay out of the sun, but to be careful about how much exposure you get, and to cover yourself with a high factor sunscreen.

 

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