The scientists observed that the more junk food the rats ate, the more they wanted to eat – a behavior very similar to that of rats addicted(上了瘾的) to heroin, a dangerous drug. Johnson said the experiment shows that the brain chemistry of obesity(肥胖) and drug addiction may be quite similar.

In their experiment, Johnson and his team studied the “pleasure center” of rats’ brains. The pleasure center is a complicated network of nerve cells. If the animal exercises or eats, the cells reward the animal by releasing chemicals into the body that make it feel good. And when the body feels good, the animal – or person – will want to do the behavior again.

For the experiment, Johnson fed foods like cheesecake to one group of rats. Food like this is high in calories and fat. Another group of rats got a regular diet. The rats that ate junk food started to eat more and more.

“They’re taking in twice the amount of calories as the control rats,” says Paul Kenny, one of Johnson’s colleagues.

Kenny and Johnson wanted to know what was going on in the brains of these rats. They first designed a way to deliver a small electrical charge to the rats’ brains. This electrical charge would stimulate the pleasure centers to release pleasure-causing chemicals. The rats could control how much stimulation – and how much pleasure – they received by running on a wheel. The more the rat ran, the more pleasure it received.

The rats that had been eating junk food started running more and more. This behavior suggested that the junk-food-eating rats needed more brain stimulation to feel good compared with rats on a normal diet. In other words, their pleasure centers were becoming less sensitive and the junk food didn’t make them feel good unless they ate more and more.

Experiments like this one could help scientists understand how chemicals in the brain contribute to obesity. With that information, they may be able to help people avoid obesity in the first place.

(Note: Answer the questions or complete the statements in NO MORE THAN TEN WORDS.)

1.The scientists suggested it was actually ___________________ that made the rats feel good.

2.How did the scientist know what was happening in the brains of the junk-food-eating rats?

3.What was the purpose of the experiment mentioned in the article?

C

Join the Family Read-Aloud Celebration, held by the Gonda Family Library and the Family School Alliance at UCLA Lab School, from February 21 to March 14,2014. We ask you to spend time reading aloud to your children at least 20 minutes each day.We hope to help families develop a habit of reading aloud every day throughout and beyond primary school. We'll finish the celebration with a party on March 14 for the whole school.

Ways to join:

● Visit Book Corner for reading aloud suggestions.

Come to the start of the activity on Friday, Feb, 21.

● Add books to our list of favorite read aloud

● Send us a photo of your family reading together (jkan,tor@ucta. edu). We will share it at the party.

● Record your family's reading journey! .

● Join us for th︿ party on March 14,5一7 p. rn.

Go on a reading journey!

Books can introduce your family to interesting people, exciting places, adventures and information. Let your journeys take you through these categories:

●Fiction ● Picture books ● Poetry

●Science ● History ● Sports

●Arts ● other Non-Fiction ● Benefits of Reading Aloud

Reading aloud helps a cloud to read with pleasure, create background knowledge, and build vocabulary. It also provides children with a reading model. Reading aloud doesn't just benefit young children. Parents should continue reading aloud as their children grow because listening comprehension is more important than reading skills in middle school.

Jim Trelease, in his Read-Aloud Handbook, has noted that almost as big a mistake as not reading to children at all is stopping too soon Until about the eighth grade, children listen and comprehend on a higher level than their reading skills allow them to read independently, This means children can hear and understand stories that are more difficult and more interesting than anything they can read on their own

1.What’s the purpose of the Family Read-Aloud Celebration?

A. To celebrate the joys of reading.

B. To help improve family relationship,

C. To change families bad reading habits.

D. To get families into the habit of reading aloud.

2.If you want to join the activity, you're supposed to __

A. mail a book to the school

B. make an appearance at the starting day

C. read out loud from 5~7 p. m every day

D. share your reading experience at the party

3.We can infer from Jim Tyelease that.

A. young children show greater skills at listening than reading

B. children should be allowed to make mistakes in reading

C. interesting stories are easier for children to understand

D. the eighth-graders can-t read on their own

4.In which part of a website can We find the text?

A. Culture B. Lifestyle.

C. Education. D. Science.

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