The Diet Zone: A Dangerous Place

   Diet Coke, diet Pepsi, diet pills, no-fat diet, vegetable diet… We are surrounded by the word “diet” everywhere we look and listen. We have so easily been attracted by the promise and potential of diet products that we have stopped thinking about what diet products are doing to us. We are paying for products that harm us psychologically and physically（身体上）.

   Diet products significantly weaken us psychologically. On one level, we are not allowing our brain to admit that our weight problems lie not in actually losing the weight, but in controlling the consumption of fatty, high-calorie, unhealthy foods. Diet products allow us to jump over the thinking stage and go straight for the scale（秤）instead. All we have to do is to swallow or recognize the word “diet” in food labels.

   On another level, diet products have greater psychological effects. Every time we have a zero-calorie drink, we are telling ourselves without our awareness that we don’t have to work to get results. Diet products make people believe that gain comes without pain, and that life can be without resistance and struggle.

   The danger of diet products lies not only in the psychological effects they have on us, but also in the physical harm that they cause. Diet foods can indirectly harm our bodies because consuming them instead of healthy foods means we are preventing our bodies from having basic nutrients(营养成分). Diet foods and diet pills contain zero calorie only because the diet industry has created chemicals to produce these wonder products. Diet products may not be nutritional, and the chemical that go into diet products are potentially dangerous.

   Now that we are aware of the effects that diet products have on us, it is time to seriously think about buying them. Losing weight lies in the power of minds, not in the power of chemicals. Once we realize this, we will be much better able to resist diet products, and therefore prevent the psychological harm that comes from using them.

56. From Paragraph 1, we learn that ________.

A. diet products fail to bring out people’s potential

B. people have difficulty in choosing diet products

C. diet products are misleading people

D. people are fed up with diet products

57. One psychological effect of diet products is that people tend to _____.

A. try out a variety of diet foods             B. hesitate before they enjoy diet foods

C. pay attention to their own eating habits     D. watch their weight rather than their diet

58. In Paragraph 3, “gain comes without pain” probably means ______.

A. losing weight is effortless            B. it costs a lot to lose weight

C. diet products bring no pain           D. diet products are free from calories

59. Diet products indirectly harm people physically because such products ______.

A. are over-consumed               B. lack basic nutrients

C. are short of chemicals             D. provide too much energy

60. Which of the following shows the structure of the passage?

Rescuers have found the bodies of over 130 people killed in two ferry disasters in Bangladesh．The accidents happened during a storm that hit the country on April 21st．Hundreds more are missing or feared to be dead．

The two ferries sank in different rivers near the capital city of Dhakfi as strong winds and rain hit the South Asian country．The government has since banned all ferries and other boats from traveling at night during the April-May stormy season. One of the ferries，MV Mitali，was carrying far more people than it was supposed to．About 400 passengers fitted into a space made for just 300，police said．The second ferry carried about 100 passengers．

“The number of deaths is certain to rise．”said an official in charge of the rescue work．“No one really knows how many people were on board the ferry or how many of them survived.” Ferries in Bangladesh don’t always keep passenger lists，making it difficult to determine the exact number of people on board．Besides the ferry accidents，at least 40 people were killed and 400 injured by lightning strikes．falling houses and trees and the sinking of small boats．Storms are common this time of year in Bangladesh，as are boating accidents．Ferry disasters take away hundreds of lives every year in a nation of 130 million people．Officials blame these river accidents on a lack of safety measures, too many passengers in boats and not enough checks on weather conditions． Ferries are a common means of transport in Bangladesh．It is a country covered by about 230 rivers．Some 20,000 ferries use the nation’s  Waterways every year．And many of them are dangerously overcrowded．Since 1977, more than 3,000 people have died in some 260 boating accidents．

1.The two ferry disasters occurred_______.

A. at noon    B. in the morning    C. at night．    D. In the afternoon．

2._______ passengers was MV Mitali designed to carry?

A.500        B.100              C.400          D.300

3.Officials attribute boating accident to _______

A. strong winds．             B. bad weather conditions．

C. the blockages of waterways． D. the lack of safety measures．

4.Which of the following statements is NOT true of the two ferry disasters?

A. They happened during a storm．         B. They sank on April 21．

C. The exact number of deaths could be easily determined．

D. They sank somewhere near Dhaka．

There are two types of people in the world. Although they have equal degree of health and wealth and other comforts of life, one becomes happy and the other becomes unhappy. This arises form the different ways in which they consider things, persons, events and the resulting effects upon their minds.

People who are to be happy fix heir attention on the convenience of things: the pleasant parts of conversation, the well prepared dishes, the goodness of the wine and the fine weather. They enjoy all the cheerful things. Those who are to be unhappy think and speak only of the opposite things. Therefore, they are continually dissatisfied. by their remarks, they sour the pleasure of society, offend (hurt) many people, and make themselves disagreeable everywhere. If this turn of mind was founded in nature, such unhappy persons would be the more to be pitied. The intention of criticizing （批评）and being disliked is perhaps taken up by imitation（模仿）. It grows into a habit, unknown to its possessors. The habit may be strong, but it may be cured when those who have it realize its bad effects on their interests and tastes. I hope this little warning may be of service to them, and help them change this habit.

Although in fact it is chiefly an act of the imagination, it has serious results in life since it brings on deep sorrow and bad luck. Those people offend many others; nobody loves them, and no one treats them with more than the most common politeness and respect. This frequently puts them in bad temper and draws them into arguments. Of they aim at getting some advantages in social position or fortune, nobody wishes them success. Nor will anyone start a step or speak a work to favor their hopes. If they bring on themselves public objections, no one will defend or excuse them, and many will join to criticize their wrongdoings. These should change this bad bait and bee pleased with is pleasing, without worrying needlessly about themselves and other. If they do not, it will be good for others to avoid any contact（接触）with them. Otherwise, it can be disagreeable and

Sometimes very inconvenient, especially when one becomes missed up in their quarrels.

1.People who are unhappy      .

        A．always consider things differently from others

         B．usually are affected by the results of certain things

         C．usually misunderstand what others think or say

         D．always discover the unpleasant side of certain things

2.The phrase “sour the pleasure of society” most nearly means “     ”.

         A．have a good taste with social life               B．make others unhappy       

         C．tend so scold others openly                         D．enjoy the pleasure of life

3.We can conclude from the passage that       .

         A．we should pity all such unhappy people

         B．such unhappy people are dangerous to social life

         C．people can get rid of the habit of unhappiness

         D．unhappy people can not understand happy persons

 To their delight, their newly-developed products were not _____ for the demand as soon as they went on the market.

A. qualified                          B. flexible                   C. available      D. adequate 

Hee-haw! Scores of farms across the country are opening up to overnight guests. The best have all the appeal of a first-rate inn ----- plus here a moo, there a moo.

Sure, you and your kids plan to conquer the theme parks. In the meanwhile, why not make a little hay? Farm stays are fast becoming the great American alternative to the pre-packaged vacation.

LIBERTY HILL FARM

Rochester, Vt.; 802/767-3926; www.libertyhillfarm.com. Adults$75, teens $50,kids 12 and under $35, including breakfast and dinner; shared baths.

Beth and Bob Kennett run a farm straight out of a storybook. You’ll find Beth in the kitchen, rolling out dough（生面团） for a pie. Bob’s busy with other work. Guests sleep in seven sunny bedrooms right in the farmhouse and can participate in any of the farm jobs. Maybe you and your kids won’t be up at 6 a.m. to meet the milk truck, but you can help with the milking twice a day, collect eggs, and pick sweet corn and wild blackberries in season.

HULL-O FARM

Durham, N.Y.; 518/239-6950; www.hull-o.com; Adults $110, kids 10—14 $60, 5—9 $50, 2—4 $35, under 2 free, including breakfast and dinner; private baths.

It started in 1993 as a way to bring in some extra money at a time of falling milk prices. But soon after Frank and Sherry Hull opened their Catskill Mountains dairy farm to overnight visitors, they discovered they loved it. As you drive up, Sherry greets you on the porch（入口处）of the 1825 farmhouse with a cow-shaped cookie jar. Before long your kids are playing around with the cows, sheep, ducks, goats and getting ready for a hayride（乘坐装满干草的牛车出游）.

MERAMEC FARM CABINS

Bourbon, Mo.; 573/732-4765; http://www.wine-mo.com Doubles with private bath $75, $10 per additional person. Trail and riding fees extra.

Climb onto the back of the Ford pickup and catch up with the herd. One gentle cow named Cricket will even let the kids sit on her back. At the barn（牲口棚）, Carol will introduce you to the horses ---15 Missouri Fox Trotters --- and lead you on a trail ride over the hills and down along the spring-fed Meramec River, where everyone swims. Grab a fishing pole and head back to the river. When you have your fill of the wild, try Carol and Dave’s favorite restaurants or wineries（酿酒厂）, within 20 miles of the farm.

1.The underlined sentence in the first paragraph implies that ___________.

2.We can learn from the three ads that _____________.

3. The Browns have a 13-year-old son and 11-year-old daughter. If they stay on Liberty Hill Farm for one night, how much will they pay?

4.Who will be most likely interested in the webpage?