A Charlotte, N.C., man was charged with first-degree murder of a 79-year-old woman whom police said he scared to death. In an attempt to evade policemen after a bank robbery, the Associated Press reports that 20-year-old Larry Whitfield broke into the home of Mary Parnell. Police say he didn’t touch Parnell but that she died after suffering a heart attack that was caused by terror. Can the guy be held responsible for the woman’s death? Prosecutors(公诉人) said that he can under the state’s murder rule, which allows someone to be charged with murder if he or she causes another person’s death while committing or fleeing from a severe crime like robbery—even if he or she doesn’t kill someone on purpose.

But, medically speaking, can someone actually be frightened to death? We asked Martin Samuels, chairman of the neurology department at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston.

Absolutely, no question about it.

The body has a natural protective method called the fight-or-flight response(战或逃反应), which was originally described by Walter Cannon,the chairman of Harvard University’s physiology department from 1906 to 1942. If, in the wild, an animal is faced with a life-threatening situation, the autonomic nervous system responds by increasing heart rate, increasing blood flow to the muscles, and slowing digestion, among other things. All of this increases the chances of succeeding in a fight or running away from an aggressive beast. This process certainly would be of help to primitive humans. However, in the modern world there is obvious decline of the fight-or-flight response.

The autonomic nervous system uses the chemical messenger to send signals to various parts of the body to activate the fight-or-flight response. This chemical is toxic in large amounts; it damages the organs such as the heart, lungs, liver and kidneys. It is believed that almost all sudden deaths are caused by damage to the heart. There is almost no other organ that would fail so fast as to cause sudden death. Kidney failure, liver failure, those things don’t kill you suddenly.

By the way, any strong positive or negative emotions such as happiness or sadness can cause the same result. There are people who have died in intercourse or in religious passion. There was a case of a golfer who hit a hole in one, turned to his partner and said, “I can die now”, and then he dropped dead. For about seven days after the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon there was an increase of sudden cardiac death among New Yorkers.

Why the Charlotte, N.C., man was charged?

A. Because he threatened the policemen to kill an old woman.

B. Because he caused an old woman’s terror and she died.

C. Because he beat an old woman and caused her heart attack

D. Because he murdered an old woman while robbing a bank.

Which of the following about the fight-or-flight response is true?

A. The fight-or-flight response was raised and proved by Martin A. Samuels.

B. It is a natural protective method that can’t be found in all creatures but humans.

C. The ancient humans had a superior fight-or-flight response than modern ones.

D. The fight-or-flight response is beneficial to both our actions and organs.

What activity can we infer is less likely to damage the organs?

A. Winning a big lottery.                   B. Missing a dead family.

C. Watching a horror movie.                 D. Listening to a sweet song.

The purpose of the passage is_________.

A. to explain why people will die of a heart attack

B. to offer some advice on protecting us from heart failure

C. to compare different kinds of feelings to cause a death

D. to show strong emotions can cause a sudden death

“Mum, what does it mean when someone tells you that they have a skeleton(骨骼)in the closet(衣橱)?” Jessica asked. “A skeleton in the closet?” her mother paused thoughtfully. “Well, it’s something that you would rather not have anyone else know about. For example, if in the past, someone in Dad’s family had been arrested for stealing a horse, it would be ‘a skeleton in his family’s closet’. He really wouldn’t want any neighbor to know about it.”
“Why pick on my family?” Jessica’s father said with anger. “Your family history isn’t so good, you know. Wasn’t your great-great-grandfather a prisoner who was transported to Australia for his crimes?” “Yes, but people these days say that you are not a real Australian unless your ancestors arrived as prisoners.” “Gosh, sorry I asked. I think I understand now,” Jessica cut in before things grew worse.
After dinner, the house was very quiet. Jessica’s parents were still quite angry with each other. Her mother was ironing clothes and every now and then she glared at her husband, who hid behind his newspaper pretending to read. When she finished, she gathered the freshly pressed clothes in her arms and walked to Jessica’s closet. Just as she opened the door and reached in to hang a skirt, a bony arm stuck out from the dark depths and a bundle of white bones fell to the floor. Jessica’s mother sank in a faint(晕倒), waking only when Jessica put a cold, wet cloth on her forehead. She looked up to see the worried faces of her husband and daughter.
“What happened? Where am I?” she asked. “You just destroyed the school’s skeleton, Mum,” explained Jessica. “I brought it home to help me with my health project. I meant to tell you, but it seemed that as soon as I mentioned skeletons and closets, it caused a problem between you and Dad.” Jessica looked in amazement as her parents began to laugh madly. “They’re both crazy,” she thought.
【小题1】According to Jessica’s mother, “a skeleton in the closet” means ______.

A.a family honorB.a family secret
C.a family storyD.a family treasure
【小题2】What can we learn about some Australians’ ancestors form Paragraph 2?
A.They were brought to Australia as prisoners.
B.They were the earliest people living in Australia.
C.They were involved in some crimes in Australia.
D.They were not regarded as criminals in their days.
【小题3】Why did Jessica bring a skeleton home?
A.She was curious about it.B.She planned to keep it for fun.
C.She needed it for her school task.D.She intended to scare her parents.
【小题4】   Jessica’s parents laughed madly at the end of the story probably because ______.
A.they were crazy
B.they were over excited
C.they realized their misunderstanding
D.they both thought they had won the quarrel

A Charlotte N.C. man was charged with first-degree murder of a 79-year-old woman whom police said he scared to death. Can the guy be held responsible for the woman’s death? Prosecutors (公诉人) said that he can under the state’s murder rule, which allows someone to be charged with murder if he or she causes another person’s death while committing or fleeing from a severe crime—even if he or she doesn’t kill someone on purpose.

But, medically speaking, can someone actually be frightened to death? We asked Martin Samuels, chairman of the neurology department at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston.

Absolutely, no question about it.

The body has a natural protective method called the fight-or-flight response, which was originally described by Walter Cannon,chairman of Harvard University’s physiology department from 1906 to 1942. If, in the wild, an animal is faced with a life-threatening situation, the automatic nervous system responds by increasing heart rate, increasing blood flow to the muscles, and slowing digestion, among other things. All of this increases the chances of succeeding in a fight or running away from an aggressive beast. This process certainly would be of help to early humans. However, in the modern world there is obvious decline of the fight-or-flight response.

The autonomic nervous system uses the chemical messenger to send signals to various parts of the body to activate the fight-or-flight response. This chemical is poisonous in large amounts; it damages the organs such as the heart, lungs, liver and kidneys. It is believed that almost all sudden deaths are caused by damage to the heart. There is almost no other organ that would fail so fast as to cause sudden death.

By the way, any strong positive or negative emotions such as happiness or sadness can cause the same result. There are people who have died in excitement or in religious passion. There was a case of a golfer who hit a hole in one, turned to his partner and said, “I can die now”, and then he dropped dead.

1.What is Martin Samuels’ attitude to the possibility of being frightened to death?

A. Approval.            B. Disapproval.                            C. Doubtful.     D. Indifferent.

2.What can we learn about the fight-or-flight response according to the passage?

A. The fight-or-flight response was raised and proved by Martin Samuels.

B. It is a natural protective method that can’t be found in all creatures but humans.

C. The ancient humans had a better fight-or-flight response than modern ones.

D. The fight-or-flight response is beneficial to both our actions and organs.

3.What activity can we infer is less likely to damage the organs?

A. Winning an unexpected fortune.

B. Missing a dead family member.

C. Watching a horror movie.

D. Listening to a sweet song.

4.The purpose of the passage is ______.

A. to explain why people will die of a heart attack

B. to offer some advice on protecting us from heart failure

C. to compare different kinds of feelings to cause a death

D. to show strong emotions can cause a sudden death

 

“Mum, what does it mean when someone tells you that they have a skeleton (骨骼) in the closet (衣橱)?” Jessica asked. “A skeleton in the closet?” her mother paused thoughtfully. “Well, it’s something that you would rather not have anyone else know about. For example, if in the past, someone in Dad’s family had been arrested for stealing a horse, it would be ‘a skeleton in his family’s closet’. He really wouldn’t want any neighbor to know about it.”

“Why pick on my family?” Jessica’s father said with anger. “Your family history isn’t so good, you know. Wasn’t you great-great grandfather a prisoner who was transported to Australia for his crimes?” “Yes, but people these days say that you are not a real Australian unless your ancestors arrived as prisoners.” “Gosh, sorry for my asking. I think I understand now,” Jessica cut in before things grew worse.

After dinner, the house was very quiet. Jessica’s parents were still quite angry with each other. Her mother was ironing clothes and every now and then she glared at her husband, who hid behind his newspaper, pretending to read. When she finished, she gathered the freshly pressed clothes in her arms and walked to Jessica’s closet. Just as she opened the door and reached in to hang a skirt, a bony arm stuck out from the dark depths and a bundle of white bones fell to the floor. Jessica’s mother sank into a faint (晕倒), waking only when Jessica put a cold, wet cloth on her forehead. She looked up to see the worried faces of her husband and daughter.

“What happened? Where am I?” she asked. “You just destroyed the school’s skeleton, Mum,” explained Jessica. “I brought it home to help me with my health project. I meant to tell you, but it seemed that as soon as I mentioned skeletons and closets, it caused a problem between you and Dad.” Jessica looked in amazement as her parents began to laugh madly. “They’re both crazy,” she thought.

1.According to Jessica’s mother, “a skeleton in the closet” means ______.

A.a family honor

B.a family secret

C.a family story

D.a family treasure

2. What can we learn about some Australian’s ancestors from Paragraph 2?

A.They were brought to Australia as prisoners.

B.They were the earliest people living in Australia.

C.They were involved in some crimes in Australia.

D.They were not regarded as criminals in their days.

3. Jessica’s mother fell down into a faint because she was ______.

A.knocked

B.frightened

C.injured

D.surprised

4. Why did Jessica bring a skeleton home?

A.She was very curious about it.

B.She planned to keep it for fun.

C.She needed it for her school task.

D.She intended to scare her parents.

5. Jessica’s parents laughed madly at the end of the story probably because ______.

A.they were quite crazy

B.they realized their misunderstanding

C.they were overexcited

D.they both thought they had won the quarrel

 

It is a matter of common observation that although incomes keep going up over the years,people never seem to become much better off! Prices are rising continuously.The condition is termed(称作) one kind 0f inflation, the money supply is becoming inflated so that each unit of it becomes less valuable.People have got used in recent years to higher and higher rates of inflation.

What could be bought ten years ago for one dollar now costs well over two dollars. It seems that this rate of inflation is tending to rise rather than to fall.If in the real world our money incomes go up at the same rate as prices,one might think that inflation does not matter.But it does when money is losing value,it lacks one of the qualities of a good money---stability (稳定) of value.It is no longer acceptable as a store of value;and it becomes an unsuitable standard of deferred(延期) payments.Nobody wants to hold a wasting possession,so people try to get rid of money as quickly as possible. Inflation therefore stimulates people spending,and prevents people from saving.

1.

What does inflation mean?

A.People’s money becomes more valuable

B.The problem of employment will be solved.

C.It’s easier for people to find better paying jobs.

D.Money keeps losing its value.

2.

From the passage.we can know inflation __________.       

A.seldom happens                   B.is very common at present

C.is a must                            D.has become less in recent years

3.

According to the passage,if incomes and prices rise together ______     

A.the business will become better      B.money will hold its value

C.inflation won’t be a problem D.inflation will remain to be a problem

4.

In a period of inflation,people are likely to  ______  .

A.put much money on the stock market(股市)      

B.stop spending money

C.hold on to money as a dependable possession 

D.spend money as soon as possible

 

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